EU leaders disagree on immigration
At the two-day summit meeting in Brussels, the Belgian capital, EU leaders could not agree to a joint declaration on migration.
In accordance with the “solidarity mechanism” proposed by the EU Commission and accepted by a qualified majority at the beginning of the month, the rules that stipulate the compulsory distribution of immigrants to each EU country, and otherwise the member states to pay 20 thousand euros for each migrant not accepted, came from Poland and Hungary.
While a joint statement was released on all other issues on the summit’s agenda, a document on migration was shared only with the signature of European Council President Charles Michel.
In the document, Michel noted that “Poland and Hungary have stated that there is a need for reconciliation on effective immigration and asylum policy, that the distribution of immigrants within the scope of solidarity measures must be based on will and that any type of solidarity provided must be evaluated equally.” he used the phrase.
At the press conference held after the end of the summit, Michel said that Hungary and Poland, which hosted a large number of Ukrainian refugees, wanted the new rules to be adopted unanimously, not by a qualified majority, and that they were not signed. common results by making an amendment to your application.
“POINT OF RETURN”
The president of the EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, however, called the consensus among the interior ministers of the EU countries on the aforementioned qualified majority rules at the beginning of the month a “turning point”.
Von der Leyen stated that work on this topic will continue in the coming days, saying:
“We must end the criminal networks of smugglers and merchants who exploit the desperation of the people. We must develop alternative ways to help people to come to the EU by safe means. We should cooperate with third countries in areas related to investment, eg renewable energy, education. Our goal is to increase cooperation with these countries against migrant smuggling and work on returns. We have a clear concept of supporting talent programs to generate legal pathways to Europe”.
MELONI DOES NOT COME OUT OF DISAPPOINTMENT
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni made assessments to Italian journalists after the EU Leaders Summit in Brussels. Stating that Italy played a leading role in this EU Leaders Summit, Meloni expressed that she was satisfied with the results of the summit.
Prime Minister Meloni said that his work on Tunisia could be the model they want to achieve for relations between North African countries and the EU.
Stating that the focus will change if the EU offers an alternative for those trying to get out of Africa, Meloni said: “Africa is not a poor continent, it has a lot of resources. It is a very large energy producer, especially clean energy. We also have a supply problem. Italy can be a gateway with these investments. There is consensus on it.” saying.
Regarding migration, which is one of the important items on the summit’s agenda, Meloni said that “the only way to address the issue of migration together is by working on the external dimension of the issue, and we have managed to make progress in that. matter.” he said.
Recalling that Poland and Hungary opposed the mandatory solidarity provided for in the new agreement on immigration and asylum, Meloni said: “The attitude of Poland and Hungary did not disappoint me. Defenders of national interests have never let me down. Their positions do not take into account the external dimension, which is my priority over immigration and the only way to tackle the immigration problem. His choice is more internal, that is, on the immigration and asylum pact ”. he used his statements.
Meanwhile, according to Italian media reports, Prime Minister Meloni, at the request of the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, held a meeting with his counterparts from Poland and Hungary, who vetoed the agreement on immigration, to seek a break. . Meloni’s meeting with Mateusz Morawiecki and Viktor Orban came to nothing.
In the news, it was stated that Warsaw and Budapest oppose the need to show solidarity with immigrants arriving by sea demanded by Italy and Greece.
THE EUROPEAN UNION SEEKS SOLUTIONS
Since the 2015 migration crisis, the EU has been looking for solutions on how to distribute asylum seekers among member states and how to return those whose asylum claims have been rejected. The “Migration and Asylum Package” prepared by the EU Commission for this purpose cannot be accepted due to the different attitudes of the member states.
2022 was recorded as “the year the EU received an unprecedented level of irregular migration since the migration crisis”. There were 330,000 irregular entries into the EU in 2022, an increase of 64 percent compared to the previous year. Immediately afterwards, the EU put migration back on its main agenda. (AA)