A mounting number of nations within the European Union are advocating for a shift in the union’s immigration stance towards the right. The adjustment being considered includes simplified procedures for expelling failed asylum seekers, as debated by the 27 nation-leaders at a summit.
During the conference within the European Council in Brussels, numerous heads of state asserted the necessity of better handling the influx of asylum applicants entering Europe. Countries including The Netherlands, Italy, Denmark, and Poland are spearheading this movement for the implementation of more rigorous regulations on the expulsion of failed applicants for asylum within the EU.
Discussions at the summit evaluated the potential establishment of deportation centres in non-EU countries. Here, unsuccessful asylum seekers would be relocated, pending their removal to their nation of origin. Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission’s president, vowed leaders to deliberate on the strategy involving these so-called “return hubs”.
Dick Schoof, the Dutch Prime Minister, confirmed upon his arrival at the conference, his government’s consideration of transferring unsuccessful asylum seekers to Uganda. A official from the Netherlands, however, noted the proposal’s infancy. Meanwhile, the freshly-formed right-leaning coalition, inclusive of the far-right Freedom Party spearheaded by Geert Wilders, has been advocating for a significantly tougher stance on asylum laws.
During the summit, Belgium’s liberal prime minister, Alexander De Croo, questioned the efficiency of return hubs in addressing migration issues. Concurrently, Greece’s prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, spoke of the necessity for an EU-wide law for deportations, labeling it the “missing link” in the EU’s recently revised migration policy enacted earlier this year.
Several nations have urged for particular aspects of these changes, termed the migration and asylum pact, to be enforced ahead of its initially scheduled mid-2026 commencement. These changes will accelerate decision making on asylum cases and offer power to authorities to detain asylum seekers at frontiers. Enacted into EU law in May, the pact, up till now, has failed to curb the growing popularity of numerous anti-immigrant, far-right parties campaigning across different nations.
Recently, Germany established check points at all its borders, aiming to regulate migration. At the same time, Poland’s Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, revealed a temporary termination of asylum requests from people crossing the border from Belarus.
This decision was defended by Mr Tusk during the EU summit, asserting that it was crucial for protecting Poland from the manipulation of immigration flow, which he described as a form of hybrid warfare being implemented by Russia and Belarus by directing migrants into the EU, seeking to destabilise European democracies.
Petteri Orpo, the Prime Minister of Finland, publically supported Mr Tusk’s stance on Thursday. He added that the Finnish government had taken similar action in the past year when it closed off its borders with Russia.
The leaders endorsed a statement at the conclusion of the summit on Thursday, calling for a new legislative proposal from the commission to accelerate the deportation from EU countries, marking it as an urgent matter. They iterated that Russia and Belarus must not exploit European principles including asylum rights, as a means to undermine the EU.
The summit additionally covered the Middle East conflict, where leaders concur with renewing the plea for a ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon and denouncing recent Israeli attacks on UN peacekeeping forces.
There were indicators that leaders were becoming increasingly critical of Israel’s military action. Taoiseach Simon Harris quizzed his peers, asking what actions needed to be taken for Israel to heed its allies. He repeated Ireland and Spain’s request for a reconsideration of the EU’s trading arrangements with Israel due to alleged human rights infringements during the conflict in Gaza.
The leaders reaffirmed their solidarity with nations going through these challenges in their concluding statement. They reiterated their call for swift and escalated deportations and added citizens should be assured Russia and Belarus won’t be able to manipulate European values, noting the right to asylum. They amplified that striking scenarios like these necessitate appropriate solutions.