Greece is hosting the 8th summit of southern EU countries on Friday 17 September, where the focus will be on
"climate change"
and
"security challenges"
, including the Afghan crisis and a possible wave of migration.
Dignitaries from nine European countries, meeting in Athens, with the participation of the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, will address the risks that could
"jeopardize security and stability in the Mediterranean"
, declared the spokesperson of the Greek government , Yiannis Economou.
Read also Should we fear a wave of migration after the fall of Afghanistan?
The agenda includes the migration issue and the situation in Afghanistan after the capture of Kabul by the Taliban, but Athens intends to place particular emphasis on
"the need for joint action"
to combat change. climate, Yiannis Economou announced Thursday during a press briefing. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has already estimated that Friday's summit would be a
"continuation of the debate on the protection of biodiversity"
and on
"the need for better cooperation in terms of civil protection, in particular for fires ”
.
Greece has been severely hit by forest fires, which devastated more than 100,000 hectares of its territory this summer. But the scorching temperatures also favored major fires in Spain, Italy, Croatia, France and Cyprus, among member countries of Friday's summit. According to the Elysée, the meeting will be an opportunity for a
"form of experience feedback"
on the European civil protection mechanism and
"the need to now resort more directly to this device"
put in place there is two years to
"strengthen our collective strike force"
against the fires. The Athens summit should also lead to the reaffirmation
"Commitments on the fight against deforestation and on forest management in the Mediterranean and in terms of civil protection"
, according to the same source.
Read alsoThe asylum opens for Afghan survivors
This meeting known as Med7 (France, Greece, Italy, Spain, Cyprus, Malta, Portugal) was renamed EU MED, due to its enlargement to Croatia and Slovenia.
Last year in Corsica, French President Emmanuel Macron and his counterparts from EU Mediterranean countries urged Turkey to end its policy of "confrontation" in the eastern Mediterranean.
While tensions with Turkey have since subsided, Europeans must
"speak with Ankara about migration issues"
, in the Afghan context, according to the Elysee.
The best sign of European solidarity would be for us to have common asylum rules and for each country to contribute in its own way to the management of a problem which is not only Greek or Italian.
"
Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Greek Prime Minister
This year, the EU is desperate to prevent a massive flow of refugees from Afghanistan, which could be compared to the migrant crisis triggered in 2015 by the war in Syria. More than a million refugees had then arrived in the European Union, mainly through Greece and Italy. While Afghans account for 45% of migrant arrivals on Greek soil since January 2021, Greece has already said that it would no longer be a
"gateway to Europe"
. For Kyriakos Mitsotakis,
"the best sign of European solidarity would be that we have common asylum rules and that each country contributes in its own way to the management of a problem which is not only Greek, or Italian"
.
Read also: Afghan emigration will not be comparable to the Syrian migration wave of 2015, according to Macron
EU leaders will focus on the European Pact on Migration and Asylum, negotiations of which have been halted due to the pandemic.
“The Asylum and Migration Pact is not at a standstill.
There has been progress ”
, according to the Élysée, but the Afghan crisis
“ necessarily revives the question of adapting our system, both operational and legislative, for the orderly human management of migration ”
.
Ursula von der Leyen had announced that a defense summit would be organized by the French presidency of the EU in the first half of 2022, while the withdrawal from Afghanistan has revived the reflection on the autonomy of Europeans.
