In the early hours of Wednesday, the European Union (EU) reached a consensus on new rules aimed at more evenly distributing the costs and responsibilities of hosting migrants, while also seeking to limit the number of people entering the bloc.
Representatives from the European Parliament and EU member states successfully negotiated an agreement after lengthy overnight discussions on the New Pact on Migration and Asylum, a set of EU laws slated to be implemented next year.
The laws encompass various aspects, including screening irregular migrants upon their arrival in the EU, asylum application procedures, rules for determining which EU country is responsible for handling applications, and crisis management strategies.
While migrant arrivals in the EU have significantly decreased from the peak of over 1 million in 2015, numbers have risen steadily from a 2020 low to 255,000 in the year leading up to November 2023. More than half of these arrivals have occurred by crossing the Mediterranean from Africa to Italy or Malta.
Past attempts to share the responsibility of hosting migrants faced obstacles, particularly from eastern EU members unwilling to accept individuals who had arrived in countries such as Greece and Italy.
Under the newly agreed-upon system, countries not located at the border will have the option to either accept refugees or contribute financially to an EU fund.
The envisioned screening system aims to differentiate between those requiring international protection and those who do not. Individuals with low chances of successful asylum applications, such as those from India, Tunisia, or Turkey, may be prevented from entering the EU and detained at the border, as can individuals deemed a security threat.
Refugee rights groups have expressed concerns, suggesting that the new system could lead to what amounts to prison camps at the EU’s borders. Source: Reuters
