The European Commission presents its new migration "pact"

The Vice-President of the European Commission Margaritis Schinas and the European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, in Brussels, September 23, 2020. Stephanie Lecocq / Pool via REUTERS

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Expected for months, postponed due to a pandemic, the new “pact” of the European Commission for asylum and migration was presented, this Wednesday, September 23 in Brussels, by Ursula von der Leyen.

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This is the end

 : " 

 ", declared the President of the Commission from the outset. European.

The new pact, which provides for “ 

 ” at the external borders, revises the principle of giving the first country of entry of a migrant into the EU the responsibility of processing his asylum application.

This “Dublin regulation”, the current pillar of the European asylum system, has continued to fuel tensions between the Twenty-Seven, because of the burden it places on countries geographically on the front line like Greece. and Italy.

According to the Commission proposal, the country responsible for the application could be the one where a migrant has family ties, where he has worked or studied, or the country which issued a visa.

Otherwise, the countries of first arrival will remain responsible for the request.

Ursula von der Leyen thus offers a new start.

And a lasting solution.

Greece, Italy and Spain will finally be able to count on the solidarity of the Twenty-Seven to welcome asylum seekers, but above all to send them back to their country of origin more quickly.

The pact provides that the EU countries that do not want to take asylum seekers in the event of an influx will, on the other hand, have to participate in the return of rejected asylum seekers from the European country where they arrived to their home country. State of origin.

One way of getting around the persistent refusal of several countries, in particular those of the Visegrad group (Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia) to welcome migrants.

All states will be involved, depending on their economic weight and their population, explained the European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson.

But they have the choice between welcoming asylum seekers, " 

 " the return of a migrant to his country or helping to build reception centers.

In the event of a “crisis” similar to that of 2015, when more than a million refugees caught Europe by surprise, a state will have to take charge of the relocation of refugees or the return of rejected migrants.

And if it fails to return migrants to their countries of origin within eight months, it must welcome them.

Speed ​​up procedures

The Commission also wants to speed up asylum examination procedures, to determine whether a person is clearly eligible, and to prevent applicants from crowding into camps like the

, Greece.

In order to increase returns, which are effective for less than 30% of cases, the European executive wants to work more " 

 " with their countries of origin by lifting their reluctance with various levers: development aid, visa policy, etc ...

In short: increased controls at external borders, tightening up on returns of irregular migrants, acceleration of procedures.

For NGOs, the reform plays into the hands of the countries most hostile to the reception of refugees.

►To listen: Greece: return to Moria, symbol of the failure of European migration policy

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New asylum and migration pact: the plan to get Europe out of the deadlock