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Représentation au Luxembourg

Migration is a European challenge, which calls for a European response

The only long-term solution to achieving a fair, European approach to migration is to adopt the New Pact on Migration and Asylum proposed by the European Commission. While discussions on the Pact are ongoing, the Commission continues working on operational measures, whilst being constructive and assisting Council and Parliament to find solutions to open issues. Luxembourg is represented at the Council and has six Members of the European Parliament.

The external dimension of migration is of paramount importance in order to prevent irregular migration, crack down on the smuggling networks and develop legal pathways for those with the right to come to the EU in the context of a comprehensive approach as regards the relations with our partner countries. Saving lives must be our first priority and we need to avoid that migrants take perilous routes to reach the EU. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a robust migration management system at EU level and to provide support to our partner countries. This includes strengthening external borders, preventing irregular migration, fighting smuggling, ensuring fast and fair asylum procedures, effective returns, sustainable reintegration, and providing alternative legal pathways, as well as opportunities for sustainable voluntary returns from countries of transit. Member States are called to work with the European Union on achieving these objectives and in this regard, a ‘whole-of-government’ approach is needed within all Member States.

Refugees have the fundamental right to receive international protection from persecution and war. The EU is building a fair and functional asylum system, through the proposed Pact on Migration and Asylum. The right to seek and enjoy asylum, as enshrined in the 1951 Refugee Convention and in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, must be always respected. The EU is committed to remain the a place where refugees find protection and safety.

In her letter to Prime Minister Xavier Bettel, ahead of the European Councils in February and March 2023, Commission  President Ursula von der Leyen set out the areas where the EU can make a real difference, in addition to actions by individual Member States, including Luxembourg:

  • Working with partner countries in a Team Europe approach in the Southern Neighborhood and Western Balkans;
  • Operational measures for Member States under migratory pressure;
  • Visa policy alignment;
  • Effective external border and migration management; and
  • Funding for an effective migration and asylum management system

Examples

Strengthening external borders

We have all a shared interest in efficient and safe management of our external borders, including in Luxembourg, in full compliance with Union and international law, including fundamental rights.

To support all Member States in this endeavour, EU funding can be used for infrastructure and equipment, like drones, radar and other means of surveillance – as we have done in the last years for example in Romania, Spain, Greece or Poland. Through strong cooperation between Member States and with Europol, Frontex and Eurojust, as well as with key partners, the fight against human trafficking and smuggling of migrants will be further reinforced.

Digitalisation of Schengen Area

The New Pact on Migration and Asylum proposed by the Commission includes the ambition to fully digitalise visa procedures. The Schengen Strategy, presented in June 2021, announced the digitalisation of visa procedures and travel documents. On 13 June 2023, the European Parliament and the Council found a political agreement allowing for the digitalisation of the Schengen visa procedure.

Fighting migrant smuggling 

The priority of the Commission is to crack down on the criminal networks of smugglers and traffickers who exploit human despair, and to break their business model by developing alternative routes to help people enter the European Union safely. It is necessary to carry on with this operational track in parallel to the legislative work, notably by forging comprehensive partnerships that invest in the economic stability of key countries of origin and transit.

The Council called on the institutions and Member States to engage in concerted efforts to mobilise relevant policy areas at national and EU level to enhance internal security, including by strengthening law enforcement and judicial cooperation, information exchange through the full use of relevant databases, protection of the external borders, fight against smugglers and close cooperation with third countries. Luxembourg has agreed to this call. The EU’s position is not new; in February 2023, the EU Member States, including Luxembourg, have entrusted the Commission to implement existing action plans and prepare new ones for the Western Balkans and Central Mediterranean (Italy, Malta) routes, with a view to quickly alleviating the pressure on the Member States most affected and effectively preventing irregular arrivals.

The EU’s and the Member States’ engagement with countries of origin and transit will be intensified, with the objective of strengthening border management capacity, preventing irregular flows, breaking the business model of smugglers, including through strategic information campaigns, and increasing returns.

External dimension and international partnerships

The European Union has pledged to continue to support partners in addressing root causes of irregular migration and regarding safe, regular and orderly migration, in full cooperation with international organisations, notably the IOM and UNHCR.

To address the needs related to migration pressures, strengthen global partnerships and respond to emergencies, the Commission has proposed to increase the:

  • MFF (Migration and Border Management) by €2 billion, supporting the implementation of the New Pact on Migration and Asylum;
  • EU Budget - Neighbourhood and the world by €10.5 billion, delivering on absolute necessities in a context of extraordinary geopolitical tension; and
  • Solidarity and Emergency Aid Reserve (SEAR) by €2.5 billion, reinstating the Union’s capacity to respond to crises and natural disasters.

Further information