After the meeting with Zelensky, the EU summit decided to strengthen the fight against illegal migration
On the second day of the European Union summit, February 10, EU leaders decided to take serious steps to combat illegal migration. In particular, Brussels is ready to finance the construction of walls on the external borders of the EU.
The issue of migration was supposed to be considered on the first day of the summit, but the discussion was moved due to the visit of Vladimir Zelensky, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
Last year, about 330 thousand people illegally crossed the external borders of the European Union - this is the largest wave in 6 years. However, according to the European Commissioner for Home Affairs, most of these migrants do not have the right to asylum in Europe.
The European Commission has long been fundamentally opposed to the construction of border walls. However, equipment for existing fences can be financed from the pan-European budget. At least such a decision has already been made regarding the border between Bulgaria and Turkey. The head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, emphasized that a border wall has already been installed on this border, but this has not yet brought the desired result.
There has long been a debate in the European Union over whether the EU budget should finance the construction of walls and fences along the external borders of the European Union. Greece and Austria strongly demand this, while Germany, Luxembourg and the European Commission are categorically against it. In the final statement of the summit participants, funding for walls and fences is not directly mentioned - it only says that EU funds should be raised to “create infrastructure” at the borders.
Italy considers the results of the summit a victory. Documents were adopted on “recognition of the characteristics of maritime borders” and on “cooperation in search and rescue operations.” According to Rome, these are the first steps towards what the Italian leadership has long been seeking at the pan-European level: serious restrictions on the activities of non-governmental organizations that rescue illegal immigrants off the coast of Libya and then take them to Italy.
Another outcome document from the summit calls for speeding up decisions on refugee status requests and speeding up the deportation of those who are ultimately denied. We are also talking about sanctions mechanisms against third countries that refuse to take migrants back.
The very next day after the end of the EU summit, Austria again tightened controls on the border with Hungary after another influx of migrants in recent months. Moreover, many of them apply for asylum in Hungary and then try to enter Austria, whose authorities believe that migrants are obliged to remain in the country where the request was submitted.
As Euronews TV channel notes, Vienna's decision to tighten checks follows a promise by European Union leaders to allocate more funds for cameras, drones and watchtowers to protect the community's borders.
As PolitNavigator reported , Ukrainian refugees in Europe are competing with illegal migrants.
English version :: Read in English After meeting with Zelensky, the EU summit decided to strengthen the fight against illegal migration