A ‘partial general approach’ on 14 October, at the ‘Home Affairs’ Council, on the regulation regarding the removal of online child sexual abuse material, political agreements in December, also at the ‘Home Affairs’ Council, on the regulation on the return of illegal residents in the EU, the first common list of safe countries of origin and the revision of the Asylum Procedures Regulation with its new concept of safe third countries... Not forgetting, also in December, the validation of agreements with the European Parliament on the regulation establishing an EU Talent Pool (legal migration) and the adoption of the very first EU Council implementing decision establishing the ‘Solidarity Pool’ under the Pact on Migration and Asylum...
The Danish Presidency of the EU Council intends to make decisive progress in the fight against illegal immigration, one of its priorities for the next six months, with a strong emphasis on the return of illegal immigrants.
Very interested in the possibility of processing asylum applications in third countries and then bringing those accepted safely to the EU, as the Danish Minister for Immigration and Integration, Kaare Dybvad Bek, told a group of journalists on 2 July, the Danish Presidency of the Council of the EU will logically examine all innovative ways of countering irregular arrivals.
The minister will call on his colleagues to draw inspiration from certain mechanisms already in place, for example with Kosovo, for the return of criminals expelled from Denmark - the two countries have an agreement - or the Italian-Albanian model.
While the Presidency will not be working on specific lists of third countries that might be candidates to host new centres or ‘hubs’ for processing asylum applications or for the ‘return’ of rejected asylum seekers to Europe, the Minister felt that it would be logical to conclude such arrangements with third countries that are relatively close to the EU. But the condition for any agreement with a third country will be respect for human rights, the minister also specified.
“To build on this foundation, the Presidency will explore new solutions to break the incentive structures behind irregular migration and dangerous journeys to Europe”, writes the Presidency in its work programme. It will also continue “efforts to strengthen the EU’s external borders and counter the threat of the instrumentalisation of migrants”.
The EU’s success in preventing irregular migration to Europe also depends “heavily on constructive cooperation with partner countries along migration routes. The Danish Presidency will therefore maintain the EU’s focus on mutually beneficial, comprehensive, and strategic partnerships with key third countries in the area of migration”.
Other priorities include the fight against organised crime and migrant smugglers (with, if possible, the validation of a political agreement with the European Parliament as early as October on the so-called ‘Europol’ regulation), and the fight against arms trafficking with the start of work on the new directive on arms trafficking.
Link to the programme: https://aeur.eu/f/HFO
Link to the draft agendas: https://aeur.eu/f/ho8 (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic with Camille-Cerise Gessant)