Migration is still one of the most controversial issues within the EU. And even today, with a general hardening of positions which leads countries governed by the extreme right to ask to move away from common standards, tension is being felt again in European capitals. Closing borders in countries like Germany to protect against immigrants generates rejection in others, like Greece, which are countries of first entry. The debate on expulsions has also been reopened, with a majority of Member States committing to expel undocumented people to third countries with which they have no roots, in addition to speeding up procedures and even deport them to non-EU centers for asylum seekers. And, faced with this panorama, Spain, Germany and France have raised their voices to demand that the implementation of the Pact on Migration and Asylum, scheduled for summer 2026, be brought forward.
This is one of the messages that Pedro Sánchez left on Wednesday during his appearance in Congress, calling to fight against migration, but that the PP blurred by talking about ETA. “Our desire is for this implementation to be immediate,” reiterated the Minister of the Interior this Thursday upon his arrival at a meeting with his counterparts in Luxembourg.
The message was also sent by the German and French ministers (the Italian did not attend the meeting). “I will attach great importance to implementing the pact on asylum and migration as quickly as possible, and even sooner if possible. This is a fundamental question, particularly for the selection and examination procedures for asylum seekers,” declared Bruno Retailleau, from the hardest wing of French conservatism, during his premiere. “We are discussing very closely with the Commission to find out if we could even advance the provisions of the pact I think it would be really good if we could put it into practice as soon as possible,” said German Nancy Faeser.
What to implement first?
And there, the first dissonances appear beyond countries like Holland or Hungary which do not even want it to start or Sweden which does not consider acceleration to be “realistic”. But among those who want to move faster, divergence arises when it comes to determining where to start. While France or Germany focus on border control, the Spanish government has warned that the pact must be implemented as a whole to avoid aspects such as the distribution of refugee quotas, more controversial, are not left aside.
“The pact must be in its entirety. Breaking the pact is not the position best suited to its real effectiveness. It is a set of more than nine regulations and a directive, but they obey the same spirit, namely a migration and asylum policy of shared and united responsibility,” declared Marlaska, who came to Luxembourg accompanied by the Minister of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, Elma Saiz, who assured that it is a “declaration of intentions “We design migration policy not only from the point of view”. border security, but also from a humanitarian point of view,” said Saiz, who discussed inclusion formulas with the interior ministers of Malta and Greece, as well as with the outgoing commissioner, Ylva Johansson.
The Commissioner “welcomed” countries that decide to apply the rules in advance and recalled that fourteen Member States have already done so in the case of border measures. On the contrary, the Hungarian minister poured cold water by ensuring that the “general deadline” for the application of the pact is 2026.
Concerns about border controls
The implementation of border controls within the Schengen area is another issue that has sparked tensions between EU countries. “It worries us,” Marlaska admitted. “We have to be careful because not having controls is more productive, it stimulates the economy, we have to be sure that there is no abuse of controls,” said Belgian Minister Annelies Verlinden. These controls and the return of migrants from countries like Germany to other countries of entry, such as Greece, arouse suspicion among the latter.
Spain also remained in the minority compared to the position of a majority of member states committed to toughening returns of undocumented migrants. 17 European countries have signed a document in which they support a “paradigm shift” which even envisages sanctions. “Non-cooperation must have consequences and be punished,” specifies the text. The draft European Council conclusions include a hint at new returns regulations that replace those in force since 2008 and update those that the European Commission presented in 2019, but which have not been agreed with the European Parliament.
“We are working on the implementation of the Pact on Migration and Asylum, it is one of the priorities. There are regulations regarding returns, how they must materialize. We have the rules, let’s apply them,” Marlaska responded to the document discussed at the meeting of foreign ministers, which indicated the possibility of deporting undocumented migrants to third countries other than those of origin.
“The main objective of the return policy is to make decisions more quickly within the current legislative framework. This will increase public security,” said the Hungarian minister, responsible for leading the negotiations as President of the EU Council, during the press conference following the ministers’ meeting, during which he took advantage opportunity to link migration to “crime”. .
Marlaska’s requests to Frontex
All stages lead to greater harshness of the processes. The EU is leading an open debate on the outsourcing of asylum management processes and fifteen countries have supported the model according to which Italy has already agreed with Albania to create immigration detention centers in that country during the processing of requests. The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, opened the door to implementing this model during the election campaign.
Government sources assure that their interlocutors used Spain as a management model. Spain, along with Italy and Greece, is one of the countries with the strongest migratory pressure upon entry. Asked about the possibility of demanding more aid from Brussels, and specifically from Frontex, which is a criticism that the PP addresses to Marlaska, the minister assured that it was “permanent”, with troops deployed to the Canary Islands , and stressed that What Spain needs is help to prevent people from going out to the Atlantic.
“We have always asked Frontex to conclude agreements with countries of origin and transit, such as Mauritania and Senegal, to be able to cooperate with them, as we do bilaterally in border protection,” explained the leader. of the Interior.
