Critical level in negative impacts of mass migration have been reached in EU this year which led to a new, almost rebellious approach in a number of Member States to the problems: capitals decided to take national measures to curb migration, instead of waiting for an agreed European response from Brussels. Speaking about this new pragmatism of nations, one should keep in mind that, late awakenings of European countries concerning migration can reshape not only the EU’s political landscape but also its demography and crime map. As latest developments indicate, the awakening Member States are not afraid to use their own national legislation anymore to decrease migration or even forge an alliance where like-minded European nations should unite forces to convince the EU to toughen its immigration laws – and bureaucrats in Brussels have no other choice but getting angry at such rebellious ideas.
The EU’s administrative bodies, supposedly, are not the only ones that feel frustrated as nations in Europe are about to regain their own voice. Both human smugglers’ criminal gangs and global migration aid NGOs may possibly have serious headaches as EU Member States slowly but surely make a shift to strategic thinking, including migration issues and, become more and more conscious in their soveireign decisions.
The results of both European elections in June and recent national elections in several Member States have clearly shown that migration has become one of people’s main concern and this has definitely contributed to a far-right surge in Europe. The landslide victory of Austrian far-right and anti-migration FPÖ in late September is the best example to illustrate what happens when European citizens become fed up with the unpleasant impacts of migration such as the increased number of crimes, serious housing problems and uncontrolled masses on the streets of small settlements.
As it is well known, reports and analyses about the unsustainable migration situation in the EU are not confidential documents which are kept in sealed boxes in Brussels and European capitals. Trends and figures are available on official websites of the specific agencies, and it is really worth taking a closer look at them.
According to the lastest report of the EU Agency for Asylum (EUAA) for the first half of 2024, by the end of June, EU countries received 513,000 applications for asylum. Germany maintained its position as the foremost destination for asylum seekers in the EU with 124,319 applications. Germany was followed by Spain (87,953), Italy (85,159) and France (77,447). At the end of June 2024, there were altogether 925,000 cases in EU awaiting a so-called first instance decision, down slightly from the end of May which was a record level not seen since the refugee crisis of 2015-2016.
As for the issue of migration, the gradually changing political athmosphere in the EU can be observed in recent announcements of some European leaders who seem to have heard the call of a new era.
The new French Prime Minister Michel Barnier after being appointed to his job mentioned immigration as one of the most pressing issues in France. With his tough statements, Barnier has made it clear that he takes a very different approach to tackling migration than that of the previous French government which was strongly supported by President Macron. ’France must not refrain from strengthening our legislative arsenal’, French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau, a longtime sceptic of immigration said in an interview with Le Figaro. His words do not need any explanation. The veteran politician calls for a harsher line on asylum claims, violence against police, radical Islam and drug trafficking – what he offers is a brand new approach. In addition, he speaks about a possible future alliance of Member States which, together, would be strong enough to reach modifications in EU legislation. ’I think we must forge an alliance with the major European countries that want to toughen up, and have already toughened up, their legislative arsenal to change European rules.’, he said to CNews.
France’s awakening was followed by the wake-up of Germany which, sadly, took place only after the deadly knife attack in Solingen. After the attack, Germany has not only instituted tighter controls at all of its land borders to reduce irregular migration and to improve security but it also takes a tougher stance towards asylum seekers – steps that have not been seen in Germany for a decade. Note that, according to Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) the European Border and Coast Guard Agency recorded 380,200 unauthorized crossings along the external border of the 29-country Schengen free-movement area which is the highest annual number since 2016.
In September, Austria and Greece also reaffirmed their common position in dealing with migration to the EU. Frankly, how bad the situation in the field of migration can be if these two countries which are located in totally different parts of Europe have the same experiences and face the same challenges?!
According the EU Asylum Agency, Greece received 29,785 asylum applications in the first half of 2024 which puts a huge burden not only on the central budget but also the law enforcement agencies. ’It is not possible for the wretched traffickers to determine who enters the EU. This is a decision that must be taken by the EU member states themselves.’, Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis said. Greece is in an uneasy situation since, according to statistics of the UNHCR, almost 7,000 refugee and migrant children entered Greece this year until July, more than four times the number for the same period in 2023.
Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer reaffirmed that both his country and Greece know how important it is to resolutely continue the fight against illegal immigration. He pledged Austria will keep advocating for more European support to Greece in handling irregular migration. Regarding the discussions in Germany on the irregular migration, Nehammer said that his country ’would support if Germany adopts a tougher position in regard to the irregular migration, including enforcing deportations’.
It is also worth mentioning the example of Cyprus – a country which declared a migration crisis and called for the EU to help months ago. Rising numbers of migrants arriving have left Cyprus in ’a state of serious crisis,’ the country’s President Nikos Christodoulides said back in April. Sadly, literally no one turned any attention to his words in Brussels. It should be added that before the European elections, a couple of countries tried to push the EU toward tougher migration policies – Cyprus was one of them. Austria, Sweden and Denmark also advocated for sending migrants back to their country of origin.
Italy’s migration-related problems have already reached a level where Rome must find a prompt and sustainable solution as soon as possible. Italy’s well-proven practices and new ideas related to tackling migration can also be useful for other European countries. Italian PM Georgia Meloni said Keir Starmer of UK had shown great interest in the planned Italian scheme, under which some migrants rescued in Italian waters will be sent to Albania to have their asylum claims processed. Sir Keir also was interested in Italy’s model of paying North African countries to do more to stop boat crossings. The British PM has suggested he will study Italy’s asylum processing deal with Albania as part of a pragmatic approach to tackling migrant boats crossing the English Channel. ’Preventing people leaving their country in the first place is far better than trying to deal with those that have arrived in any of our countries’, he said adding that, in a sense, this kind of thinking is ’a return to British pragmatism.’
This ’new pragmatism’ seems to be spreading quite quickly across the continent, as in response to mass migration, a couple of EU countries have reintroduced border checks within the Schengen zone. In September, Germany, Austria, Denmark, France, Italy, Norway, Slovenia, Sweden and Finland have all reinstated or intensified border controls. Germany has not only instituted tighter controls at all of its land borders to reduce irregular migration and to improve security but it also takes a tougher stance towards asylum seekers. New Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof has made reducing immigration a key priority for his government. The Dutch government’s new approach to immigration includes strict asylum policies, including ending family reunifications and cutting international student numbers. The new government in the Netherlands also plans to end state-funded housing for rejected asylum seekers by 2025. According to Dutch public broadcaster NOS, the authorities have been spending around 30 million euros annually on housing rejected asylum seekers.
With their new rules on migration, Member States try to address significant threats to internal security or public policy and reflect growing concerns over migration and terrorism. Over the past years, various Islamist attacks in Europe has led to public discontent. Tension has been building on the issue of migration not in one or two years but over almost a decade.
However painful Europe’s demographic and labour figures may be, it has become clear that allowing mass migration to the EU is not the right solution. It has been established, through a number of sobering examples, that the price Europe has to pay for migration, is too high. This price is called, symbolically, Solingen, and the silent acceptance of what happened there cannot be the right response. Each country has the right to decide who it will allow to enter its territory – this awakening is the most significant result of this year’s national actions in the sphere of migration. Dismantling old practices and mindsets should not take a decade. Europe cannot wait for an adequate reaction so long. It simply deserves a prompt and adequate response. We deserve it. Still not too late to wake up…
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