SPIEGEL ONLINE: Mr. Lykketoft, three years ago, you were President of the UN General Assembly and co-founder of the New York Declaration on Refugees and Migrants, which now became the UN Migration Pact. Are you proud of it?

Lykketoft: Yes, because we now have a contract, an agreement that it is necessary to regulate migration. And we say: migration exists and it will continue to exist. Incidentally, it is also important from outside the EU to provide the European labor market with qualified personnel.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: The critics, especially from the right-wing party spectrum in Europe, say that migration is being presented too positively. The negative effects would be suppressed. What do you reply?

Lykketoft: ... I'm sure many people see it that way because migration is perceived very differently. However, many states also believe that the benefits outweigh the dangers, and many poor countries rely heavily on the money sent by migrants. Ultimately, each country can decide how much migration it allows. Different views should not lead to the rejection of the Compacts.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Was there similar criticism from other parts of the world as from Europe?

Lykketoft: We have not experienced such resistance. On the contrary, some African representatives hope that the pact will put an end to the very dangerous irregular migration that is currently taking place, for example, across the Mediterranean. And they hope that such a simplified access to Europe can emerge. That's why some politicians in Europe now fear that more immigration could happen, something they do not like.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Is that in the pact?

Lykketoft: No, he's a statement, and he says there has to be regulated migration. And that was a step forward for many African countries, that was recognized. But we have stated that there is no specific obligation for a certain number of entries in the document. It is a text about principles and hopes, and about the need for regulation.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Regulation usually means strict restrictions for Europe. For African ears that may sound like more options. Wakes the false hope of a right to more migration?

Lykketoft: Partly yes, partly no. The African countries would have liked to have more binding commitments, according to the motto: If we manage to regulate migration better, what can you offer us? The Europeans answer: Let us see how we can regulate migration together. There are false hopes and fears on both sides.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Does the Compact make sense if it is so soft, fosters false fears and false hopes?

Lykketoft: It is definitely meaningful and necessary, as a start of a rational debate on migration. I understand that this creates irrational fears and may even create hopes that are unfounded. But you have to start somewhere. And we did that. The UN is never stronger than the members allow it.

The UN migration pact

The key points at a glance

The UN Migration Pact for "Safe, Orderly and Regulated Migration" will be formally adopted at a conference in Marrakech, Morocco on 10 and 11 December. In Germany, a debate has arisen about the document, not least within the Union.

Non-binding agreement

After lengthy negotiations, the United Nations first reached a global agreement in July, which identifies more than 20 migration policy objectives. The agreements are not binding. Rather, it is a declaration of intent to prevent illegal immigration and to better control legal immigration.

Data and documents

The objectives of the Migration Pact include the collection and use of correct data as a basis for political action. A "public discourse based on verifiable facts" should be promoted. It also seeks to ensure that all migrants have "proof of legal identity". According to the Foreign Office, this is above all a matter of the homelands of the migrants issuing ID cards to their citizens quickly and smoothly.

Discrimination and human rights

In the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM), countries commit to eliminating all forms of discrimination. This includes the persecution of "hate crimes", as it is already legally anchored in Germany in racist, xenophobic or other inhuman motives.

A further goal is the rescue of human lives as well as a stronger international fight against smugglers and human trafficking. Detention of immigrants, such as on the US border with Mexico, is mentioned as a "last resort".

labor migration

The pact provides for the promotion of a "fair and ethical recruitment of workers and ensuring decent work conditions". According to the Foreign Office, this is primarily about migrant and seasonal workers who are threatened by exploitation and trafficking in other countries.

In general, labor mobility should be facilitated, for example by facilitating the mutual recognition of qualifications and promoting training and further education. In addition, immigrants should be granted access to basic services. However, this is already regulated by law in Germany.

Impact in Germany

The UN-Migration Pact is not an international treaty and therefore not binding. According to the Federal Government, Germany already fulfills the political guidelines contained therein in any case. Nor is it an international refugee agreement, but an agreement to cover all forms of global migration.

The pact does not include acceptance commitments. By contrast, the Federal Government hopes that countries of origin and transit will be more politically involved and motivated to make a greater contribution to reducing illegal migration and combating the causes of flight.

Countries that reject the agreement

More and more countries reject the text draft for the UN-Migration pact. Most recently, Australia's government said the agreement could "encourage illegal immigration." The United States, Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland, Israel, Hungary, Bulgaria and Estonia also opposed the agreement.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: What triggered the New York Declaration, which became the UNO Migration Pact?

Lykketoft: Given the very strong wave of unregulated refugee movements to Central Europe in the fall of 2015, most countries were very aware of this need.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: So the migration pact was a by-product of the Syrian refugee crisis?

Lykketoft: That triggered a statement on flight and migration. The refugees did not leave in such masses because they absolutely wanted to go to Europe. It was so that the donor countries did not fulfill their obligations. The United Nations aid for housing and food had to be cut by 40 percent. This was one of the main reasons why people marched who would rather have stayed in the neighborhood of their country.