The interior ministers of EU member states will meet on Thursday and Friday to discuss the reform of free movement and asylum policy. Compromise is necessary, but difficult. The German side’s proposal was made by the Minister of the Interior, Nancy Feser. Is Romania also targeting this?

New JAI, old problem

In the presence of the ministers of interior affairs of the member states of the European Union, as well as with the participation of the ministers of interior affairs of Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein, the meeting of the JAI Council will take place in Luxembourg on Thursday and Friday. This is the last one organized during Sweden’s presidency of the European Union.

On the preliminary agenda of the JAI Council for Thursday, there is a discussion of the general situation in the Schengen area based on the European Commission’s 2023 report on the state of the free movement area. It is proposed to adopt a strategy of free movement in the EU for the next 12 months.

Romania’s accession to the Schengen zone is not on the agenda of the meeting, although its borders include a wide gate for refugees and asylum seekers.

Border control

As relevant EU ministers negotiate the reform of European asylum policy in Luxembourg, they face a difficult task. For example, Germany’s interior minister, Nancy Feiser, should work towards an outcome that Italy’s neo-fascist Prime Minister Giorgia Maloney, as well as the left wing of the Greens, could accept. A practically impossible thing.

Currently, many conditions are not settled in the EU. The Dublin system officially exists. It provides that asylum seekers can apply when they set foot on the territory of the Union. We are talking about countries with the external border of the EU, such as Greece, Italy, Spain or Romania. But they seem to systematically discourage refugees or allow some of them to move to other European countries.

Many are “anchored” in Germany. And since a fair distribution of those seeking protection in Europe has so far failed, the pressure is growing here as well. Because there are not only about 20,000 asylum seekers per month. Since the beginning of Russia’s attack on Ukraine, a million Ukrainians have also been living in Germany. And the idea of ​​restoring border control appears.

Border procedures are intended for people who, as a rule, have little chance of being recognized as asylum seekers. According to estimates, one in four will have to go through border procedures, for example citizens of Georgia, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Syrians or Afghans, who currently make the most asylum applications in Germany, will continue to go through the normal procedure.

Applicants must wait up to three months in EU housing near the external border to undergo border procedures. During this time, the authorities check whether the request is acceptable. If necessary, people are officially allowed to enter the country. If they say no, they must return to their country of origin.

Exceptions suggested by Faeser

A month ago, the federal government notified the federal states and municipalities about these border procedures as a way to reduce migratory pressure.

In a document with a position, thirty deputies from the Greens and SPD warned against weakening the fundamental right to asylum. For example, it says: “Under no circumstances should minors and their parents be involved in such a procedure at the border.”

And that’s exactly what Nancy Feiser wants to achieve, and as she said, the federal government has “one position.” On this basis, she will conduct negotiations in Luxembourg, as the EU Commission proposed to exempt only families with children under 12 from border procedures.

It is possible that Feiser will try to make a statement by recalling his election campaign in Hessen. The SPD politician wants to become the prime minister of this country in the fall. She has not yet campaigned in Germany, but success in the EU’s asylum policy could be important for her.