At the asylum summit, the years-long dispute over an EU asylum system seems to have come to an end. What does the agreement mean? All information on the decided procedure.
Luxembourg – For the first time, the asylum summit of EU interior ministers paves the way for a uniform asylum procedure at the EU's external borders. For years, Europe has been struggling to reform the Common European Asylum System (CEAS). Thanks to the agreement, Europe can finally ensure reliable management and order of migration and come to a new, more solidary migration policy, said Interior Minister Nancy Faeser. But even after the agreement, sharp criticism of the uniform asylum procedure is inevitable. How is the reform of the asylum procedure supposed to work? And what does the agreement mean? An overview.
EU asylum summit paves the way for asylum procedures: agreement reached on CEAS reform
The agreement reached at the asylum summit makes it possible for the first time to carry out asylum procedures at Europe's external borders so that people with little chance of being accepted do not enter the EU in the first place. For this purpose, there should be asylum centers near the border, from where migrants are to be deported directly.
Italy, Greece and Austria prevailed with the demand to be able to deport rejected migrants to so-called safe third countries. These include countries such as Tunisia and Albania. Germany wanted to prevent this if the deportees did not have a close connection to third countries, for example through their families. According to the EU Commission and the Swedish Presidency, however, it is sufficient if the migrants have merely passed through.
Who is affected by the EU asylum procedure?
For the time being, external border procedures will only apply to migrants from countries that have a recognition rate of less than 20 percent on average in the EU. This applies, for example, to people from Turkey, India, Tunisia, Serbia or Albania. The proceedings should last a maximum of twelve weeks. However, some are exempt from the asylum procedure. The majority of refugees, for example from Syria, Afghanistan or Sudan, should continue to have the right to a normal procedure.
Agreement reached at EU asylum summit. The interior ministers have negotiated a reform of the CEAS. © Alexandros Michailidis/dpa
In principle, anyone fleeing persecution or serious harm in their country of origin has theright to apply for international protection. The right to asylum is enshrined in Article 18 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. In Germany, all asylum seekers have the right to an asylum procedure in which the individual reasons for fleeing are carefully examined. The right to asylum in Germany is laid down in Article 16a of the Basic Law (GG). Emergency situations such as poverty, civil wars, natural disasters or a lack of prospects are thus generally excluded as grounds for granting asylum under Article 16a of the Basic Law.
EU agrees on asylum procedures at external borders – criticism after EU migration summit
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) called the agreement in Luxembourg "historic". However, Faeser was not able to prevail with the demand for exemptions for families with children from the border procedures. Not even a handful of states supported the federal government. The German demand was recorded in a so-called protocol note, a written additional declaration.
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But there is also criticism of the future uniform EU asylum procedure. The association Pro Asyl spoke of a "frontal attack on the right of asylum". Of the traffic light parties, the Greens in particular, but also the SPD, are facing sharp criticism from supporters. They fear an increasing "isolation" of the EU. For the Greens in particular, the asylum compromise could be a crucial test. Amnesty International warned against a "breach of human rights taboo" against the spirit of the coalition agreement in the event of German approval.
After asylum summit of EU ministers: Poland and Hungary reject reform
Poland and Hungary also categorically reject the EU asylum reform, but from different Greens. In the future, they will have to pay a penalty payment of 20,000 euros for each migrant they do not accept. The money is to flow into a fund from which migration projects will be financed. Whether Warsaw or Budapest will ever pay is uncertain.
Hungary and Poland want to put the issue back on the table at the EU summit on 29 and 30 June in Brussels. In addition, the EU countries still have to come to an agreement with the European Parliament. This is considered very difficult because, according to diplomats, the positions are "miles apart". The German government is pushing for the asylum reform to be completed by the European elections in June 2024.
CEAS forms the basis for a common EU asylum system
The EU's asylum policy aims to grant an appropriate status to every third-country national in need of international protection in one of the Member States and to ensure compliance with the principle of non-refoulement. The EU has been working on the Common European Asylum System (CEAS) since 1999. Today's core element of the common system is the EU-wide harmonisation of protection and reception standards. They aim to ensure that asylum seekers are granted international protection on equal terms across the EU.
Last year, there were around 966,000 asylum applications across the EU. Overall, Germany received by far the most asylum applications in the EU in 2022 – a total of 226,467. Last year, Germany recorded the highest number of asylum applications since 2016, reports Welt am Sonntag, citing a confidential report on migration and the refugee situation. (bohy/afp)
