About: asylum policy Archives

European Union governments that refuse to host refugees could instead pay to be excused from the bloc's system of sharing out migrants, France and Germany proposed on Thursday (6 December) as they sought to end a long-running EU feud over migration.

German Chancellor Merkel's momentous 2015 decision to accept asylum-seekers from the region fell flat: the Chancellor did not rise to the occasion and chart a new course for both Europe and the Middle East, writes Faisal Al Yafai

Friedrich Merz, trailing in the race to succeed Chancellor Angela Merkel as leader of her Christian Democrats (CDU), sparked uproar by questioning Germany's constitutional guarantee of asylum at a hustings late on Wednesday (21 November).

In view of the long-blocked negotiations about the reform of the EU's Dublin asylum system, Luigi Achilli argues that it is not migration but the lack of a common European response that is putting the EU's future at risk.

As the EU considers tougher rules for returning asylum seekers who had their application rejected, more people might be placed in detention and the possibility of voluntary return could be limited, writes Anna Lundberg.

Czech MEP Jan Zahradil has recently announced his intention to become the ECR's lead candidate for the 2019 European Elections. He is a supporter of a multi-speed Union, with freedom for member states to pursue a foreign policy that best suits their own interests.

At a time when Europe needs something to inspire the 2018 State of the Union speech disappointed, writes Dick Roche.

The EU's stand on migration policy is moving towards the demands of the Visegrad group, one of the best functioning groups in the bloc, says Dr Kai-Olaf Lang, adding that in many respects, Germany and V4 are much closer to each other today than Germany and France.

The European Commission yesterday (19 July) stepped up a legal battle with Hungary over EU migration rules and denounced as illegal its "Stop Soros" law that criminalises support for asylum seekers.

Austria's hardline interior minister Herbert Kickl said yesterday (10 July) he would push to change the EU's migration policy to make it impossible to make asylum requests on European soil.

In a wide-ranging opinion poll on migration led by Avaaz, the citizens of four major EU countries overwhelmingly said they were in favour of solidarity and a joint European asylum policy for refugees.

French lawyers will file a complaint against Bulgaria and ask the European Commission to start an infringement procedure for inhumane treatment of asylum seekers by the country’s authorities, the Green/EFA group announced on Tuesday (26 June).

European Union leaders meeting over migration later this week will agree to further tighten their external borders, give more support to Libya and look at creating "disembarkation" centres outside of their territory for people who arrive by sea.

The recent EU mini-summit on migration held on 24 June has reaffirmed more openly than ever before, the fundamental dissensions and schism among member states, if not among EU institutions themselves, in the field of migration and asylum policy. A two-speed EU migration policy would be the best solution to keep EU unity, writes Solon Ardittis.

Sixteen EU heads of state and government held an emergency summit in Brussels on Sunday (24 June) to discuss migration - a crisis with a destructive potential for the EU. No results were announced, but sources said the discussions had largely revolved around a proposal by Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte.

Following a week of debates, French deputies adopted the controversial draft law on asylum and immigration in its first reading. However, some of the provisions could be contrary to European law on the matter. EURACTIV.fr reports.

France’s lower house approved by a large majority on Sunday (22 April) a bill that would tighten asylum rules and make punishable by one year in jail the illegal crossing of borders,  after tense debates that created the first cracks within President Emmanuel Macron’s party.

A top Greek court ruled on Wednesday (18 April) that migrants landing on Greek islands should no longer be held there while asylum claims are assessed, a decision raising alarm among EU officials in Brussels.

The Turkish government wants the Czech authorities to extradite a Syrian Kurdish leader detained this weekend at Ankara's request to face terror charges in Turkey, it said on Sunday (25 February).

Only "16% of asylum seekers" who have arrived in Greece are likely to be sent to Turkey despite a controversial EU deal, the former head of Greece's asylum service said Sunday.

With Turkey being one of the items on the agenda of the EU summit starting on Thursday (19 October), AFP is reporting that migrants are still coming to Greek islands despite the EU-Turkey deal to stem the arrival of refugees from Turkish territory.

The Commission on Wednesday (27 September) made no proposals to continue with the divisive mandatory refugee relocation system and instead focused on resettlement, which means taking candidate refugees from outside the EU, on a non-mandatory basis.

Estonian Ambassador to Poland Harri Tiido explained the priorities of his country’s EU Presidency and talked about the current challenges facing Europe, in an interview with EURACTIV.pl.

CIVICO-Europa, an informal group set up by opinion leaders and later supported by politicians, presented today (20 March) a manifesto for the future of Europe, based on “doing much better together”, rather than the traditional way of “doing more”.