EUROPE-MIGRANTS/EU MINISTERS EU leaders meet in Brussels to seek agreement on migrant crisis

Record ID: 146494

  • Title: EUROPE-MIGRANTS/EU MINISTERS EU leaders meet in Brussels to seek agreement on migrant crisis
  • Date: 20th July 2015
  • Summary: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (JULY 20, 2015) (REUTERS) GERMANY INTERIOR MINISTER HABER TALKING TO JOURNALISTS HABER AND JOURNALISTS
  • Embargoed: 4th August 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Belgium
  • Country: Belgium
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVADW7FBIP3K68QOPD3JGEKL8PIP
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: The European Union tried to reach an agreement on Monday (July 20) to tackle the migrant crisis in the Mediterranean despite resistance by some member nations.
    Spain, Austria and Poland oppose a plan put forward by the European Commission to relocate migrants, saying they are not ready to absorb large numbers of new asylum seekers.
    Following the deaths of some 700 people on a fishing boat heading for Italy from Libya in April, the European Commission, the EU's executive, has proposed a plan to keep more migrants from attempting the dangerous crossings. But it faces objections from EU governments dealing with anti-immigrant parties at home.
    Despite an agreement among EU leaders at a summit in June, Spain, Austria and Poland have emerged as the staunchest critics of a relocation plan, opposing the number of asylum seekers they are expected to take in from Italy and Greece.
    Poland has committed to take in 1000, falling short of the EU Commission's requests of more than 2500 migrants, EU diplomats say. Spain has to date not presented any formal engagement.
    Spain's Home Affairs Minister Jorge Fernandez Diaz said his country was already doing enough.
    "Today we are shamefully witnessing a humanitarian drama in the central Mediterranean which touches us all obviously. But I would like to remind you that if there is no humanitarian tragedy on the Atlantic side or in the oriental Mediterranean it's because Spain is fulfilling its duty with responsibility and solidarity," he said.
    EU officials remain sceptical about Spanish commitments, and they fear that other countries may follow in Spain's footsteps, reducing their targets, if Madrid keeps a tough line.
    Austrian Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner said her country was also doing more than its fair share.
    "Meanwhile, Austria has become the first target country. If you do calculations based on the number of inhabitants, Austria deals with ten times more asylum seekers' applications than Greece and Italy put together and this cannot be right. It's the contrary, I cannot see this as solidarity: if one country handles ten times more asylum seekers' applications than Greece and Italy put together and this country is being asked once again to take more refugees, this nobody can understand," Mikl-Leitner said.
    An estimated 150,000 migrants have so far reached Europe by sea this year, most of them arriving in Italy and Greece, the International Organisation for Migration said. More than 1,900 migrants have drowned in the Mediterranean, twice the toll during the same period last year, spokesman Joel Millman said.
    EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said it was time the European Union had "a foreign and interior policy aimed at solidarity."
    Under the plan, the commission wants EU governments to take in 20,000 refugees from their countries of origin or in transit, such as displaced Syrians, or in neighbouring Lebanon or Jordan.
    In addition, to reduce the pressure on the southern European countries where many migrants first land, EU governments must also agree to distribute 40,000 asylum seekers from Italy and Greece to other EU countries over the next two years.
    In exchange for taking in more refugees, the commission blueprint involves stricter identification of migrants arriving in Europe and streamlined procedures to send home those who cannot claim international protection.
    An EU military mission in the Mediterranean is also underway to discourage migrant traffickers from arranging new crossings.
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