- Nineteen prisoners use cutlery to break out of cells at Winchester prison
- France wants progress in Ukraine before Russia returns to G7
- Italy president begins talks to seek way out of government crisis
- Italian PM expected to resign as political chaos deepens
- Russia says US cruise missile test ‘regrettable’
- Kremlin - No date set for Normandy talks on Ukraine despite Macron meeting
- Egypt court hands out 6 death sentences on terror charges
- Putin says Russian nuclear explosion poses no threat
- Russian panel eyes alleged foreign interference in protests
- Gran Canaria wildfire triggers evacuation of thousands of people
- PM Johnson calls on Germany and France to compromise on Brexit
- Sudan's ex-president Bashir arrives at corruption trial
Friday, 24 July 2020 _EU member states and Western Balkan countries have agreed to form a coordination platform in Vienna to tackle illegal immigration. After a two-day conference in Austria, politicians said they are focusing on protecting the borders and returning those not entitled to stay as quickly as possible.
Vienna agrees to host a so-called “coordination platform” for EU and Western Balkan states to combat illegal immigration.
The announcement comes after a two-day conference during which Western Balkan states, who attended via video call, were asked to improve their asylum capacities.
Officials say a major part of the agreement is ensuring a sound return policy.
But sending people back has been impossible for months due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The German interior minister, also representing the EU council presidency said there had been a clear increase in the number of migrants and refugees moving towards Europe via the Western Balkan and eastern Mediterranean routes.
The Austrian idea to create a coordination platform was lauded as timely and necessary to align priorities but Europe has been facing a lot of criticism for failing to come up with a common asylum policy the last time it tried in 2016.
At the height of the crisis in 2015 to 16 Austria took in more than one percent of its population in asylum seekers, causing radical right-wing politicians to raise the alarm and win votes. That scenario, critics say can only be avoided if the burden is distributed evenly through an agreement that’s still far from realization.
Your Comment