Brussels, 18/07/2008 (Agence Europe) - Antonio Guterres, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, said on Wednesday 16 July that the European Union must remain accessible to asylum seekers. “Europe must remain a continent of asylum”, Mr Guterres stressed at a press gathering with Jacques Barrot, European Immigration Commissioner. “There are still enormous disparities between member states”, he bemoaned, specifying that the “rate of recognition of Iraqi refugees varies from 0 to 90% depending on the country”. “We want access to asylum procedures to be guaranteed” in the Union, he stressed. On this occasion, Mr Guterres pointed out that he was under discussion with the Italian authorities to ensure that measures taken against immigrants in an unlawful situation do not affect the right to access to asylum. Jacques Barrot said he would put forward several proposals for building a “protective, effective and fair” asylum system. The Commissioner also spoke of the immigration and asylum pact presented by France. “This pact only makes sense if it is accompanied by a generous and ambitious asylum policy (…). It does not aim at locking the doors to Europe but at organising migratory phenomena in order to prevent a tragedy”, he said. Mr Barrot was also “convinced of the need for a more active policy for re-entry into the EU” and undertook to present a resettlement programme in 2009 that will be “based on voluntary member state participation”. “The European Commission encourages member states to resettle a large number of Iraqi refugees and, ,for now, we have a positive welcome from Germany”, he said. “I wish to recall this imperative during the next Council of EU Interior Ministers”, next week, he explained. Ministers are expected to adopt conclusions recommending the voluntary hosting of Iraqi refugees by member states. The European Commission is henceforth committed to helping member states with €10.8 million and envisages reopening credit lines as of September this year. While the HCR has a major programme for the resettlement of Iraqi refugees in the countries of the Middle East, Mr Guterres invited Mr Barrot to carry out a “joint mission” in a resettlement centre on the spot. (B.C./transl.jl)