The EU has reached a “historic” deal on a new deal on migration and asylum

After a marathon of talks that began on Monday, negotiators from the European Parliament and the Council, led by the Spanish president, managed to iron out their differences and reach an initial political agreement on five new laws. To receive, manage and resettle irregular migrants arriving in Member States of the Community subject to formal approval.

“EU laws cover all phases of asylum and migration management, from the screening of irregular migrants when they arrive in the EU, the collection of biometric data, the procedures for submitting and processing asylum applications, to the rules for determining which Member State. to process an asylum claim, cooperation and solidarity between Member States. and how to handle crisis situations, including cases of exploitation of migrants”The Council of the European Union said in a statement.

“Good news. We did it! We have an agreement on migration and asylum. We’ve been negotiating the hearing for two days and two nights.”Ylva Johansson, European Commissioner for Home Affairs, celebrated in a post on social network X.

Then he said “So Proud” to reach “A Global Agreement on Migration and Asylum based on our European values, better protection of our external borders, greater solidarity and greater protection for vulnerable people and asylum seekers”.

“December 20, 2023 will go down in history”

The President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metzola, also admitted that she was proud of the achievement of European leaders this Wednesday. “December 20, 2023 will go down in history” such as “The day the EU reached historic agreement on new rules for managing immigration and asylum”In an old Twitter post. “Europe Defies the Odds Again”he added.

At a press conference held at the European Parliament in Brussels, Roberta Metzola considered the preliminary agreement on a new deal on migration and asylum a key success of her mandate and that the EU could finally combine “solidarity and responsibility”..“In 2019, migration was the main concern of European citizens, and it remains so today,” said the President of the European Parliament.

The still preliminary agreement, which must be approved first by parliament in the coming months and then by the council without the possibility of a veto by countries, comes days after the Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) specified. Since 2016, irregular crossings within European borders have been the highest. According to Frontex, they exceeded 335,000 incidents in the first 11 months of the year.

w/agencies