EU looks for 'big pot of money' to handle migration

By Gabriela Baczynska

 

Migrants stand at a naval base after they were rescued by the Libyan coastguard, in Tripoli, Libya October 18, 2017. REUTERS/Ismail Zitouny

 

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union leaders will promise during talks in Brussels "sufficient and targeted funding" for migration projects in Africa and elsewhere, according to a draft statement that shows they have yet to put their money where their mouth is.

 

The EU has spent billions of euros in recent years on keeping a lid on immigration from the Middle East and Africa after a 2015 peak in arrivals overwhelmed the bloc and fuelled support for populist, right-wing and anti-immigration groups.

 

In 2016, the EU promised Turkey at least 3 billion euros over two years for the Syrian refugees it hosts in exchange for Ankara cutting off the migratory route to Greece. It has so far contracted to pay nearly 1.7 billion of that and disbursed 900 million.

 

The bloc has been giving money to Greece and Italy, the main EU countries of arrival for refugees and migrants crossing the Mediterranean, spending on tightening external borders, as well as financing more deportations from Europe and providing training and equipment to the Libyan border and coast guard.

 

Italy has led EU's efforts on the lawless Libya, where the bloc is also funding U.N. programmes to send people back home further south in Africa - so that they do not try to cross to Europe - and improve the miserable conditions in camps where migrants are often stuck.

 

The bloc decided to sponsor many other projects in Africa, including in Niger, to promote growth and slow emigration.

 

But EU governments have been slow to chip in to the so-called Africa Trust Fund, with one senior EU diplomat saying on Wednesday the shortfall is in the "high tens of millions" of euros.

 

"If the situation is not fixed quickly, we might find ourselves in a position that we cannot carry out our policies," the diplomat said.

 

Some EU states have been hesitant to pay, saying not all projects proposed under the Africa scheme were clearly tied to keeping a lid on migration to Europe, or complaining about funds going to waste because of mismanagement or corruption.

 

"You need to know what that money will be spent on and that has not been entirely clear so far. You need to know who will benefit from this money," another senior EU diplomat said.

 

An EU official summed up the atmosphere around the table by saying: "There is no trust in the Africa Trust Fund."

Asked what does the EU - which will hold a high-profile summit with African partners in Abidjan on Nov.28-29 - need to solve this headache, the person added: "A big pot of money."

 

INTERNAL EU BATTLES

 

Beyond discussing financing to keep immigration to the bloc under control, EU leaders meeting in Brussels on Thursday and Friday will praise Italy for its efforts in Libya.

 

The EU has faced heavy criticism from rights groups that the bloc is turning into a fortress, deprives refugees and migrants of their rights and exposes them to even more suffering. Brussels says investing in Africa could help prevent migrants from seeking to trek north and risk their lives in deadly crossings through the Sahara and the Mediterranean.

 

After more than a million people crossed the sea in 2015, the number stood at 363,000 in 2016 and is below 160,000 so far this year, according to data from the United Nations and EU border agency Frontex.

 

Frontex said on Wednesday the 156,000 arrivals this year via all four main routes - leading to Greece, Italy, Spain and south-east EU states - mark a two-third fall from a year ago.

 

With emotions surrounding migration having subsided somewhat from the 2015 peak, EU leaders will also touch on how to handle those asylum-seekers who make it onto European shores, an issue that has divided them for two years now.

 

Frontline southern states and wealthy countries that receive most asylum seekers have sought to require other countries to take more in; eastern EU members have refused.

 

Estonia, currently the bloc's rotating chairman, will make anther proposal at squaring the circle days after the summit.

 

"The positions have not changed much but there is a slight shift maybe for a broad agreement," another senior EU diplomat said.

 

Sources said the proposal to reform the bloc's asylum rules will still include some version of an obligatory or automated relocation scheme for times of high arrivals. That has long been opposed by Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and the Czech Republic, and may be too watered down to win backing from Greece or Italy.

 

(Additional reporting by Robin Emmott, Alissa de Carbonnel, Lily Cusack, Alastair Macdonald; editing by Peter Graff)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-10-19

Looks like they are going to get it from the UK!

How about talking about the returning of refugees to their homeland such as all these Syrians? Why they still coming and evrn can let their family members coming over and even they take holidays in their homeland while enjoying their free homes and free monthly allowance in Europe what a bullshit!!!

Hopefully the 27 nations left can cough up !

It's a tough situation. Two root causes: overpopulation and lack of resources in migrant-producing countries.

1 hour ago, boomerangutang said:

It's a tough situation. Two root causes: overpopulation and lack of resources in migrant-producing countries.

Most of the migrant-producing countries don't lack resources.

What they lack is a population that is capable of governing themselves.

3 hours ago, Destiny1990 said:

How about talking about the returning of refugees to their homeland such as all these Syrians? Why they still coming and evrn can let their family members coming over and even they take holidays in their homeland while enjoying their free homes and free monthly allowance in Europe what a bullshit!!!

 

Syrians coming as refugees, getting monthly allowances and free homes in Europe, while taking their holidays in Syria.

Right....

Don't suppose there's actually something concrete to support this.

 

hum right and ngos crying foul only because they are the main beneficiaries from government handouts, which they are loosing when the migrant stream diminishes. an asylum industry has been growing pervertently big at the expense of hard working tax payers and to no avail to any country's well being. hence it imperative to destroy and scale down the unproductive asylum industry. thereupon im feeling no remorse for illegals drowned in med. sea for its their own cause they wanted to be where they are.

 

wbr

roobaa01

1 hour ago, TooPoopedToPop said:

Most of the migrant-producing countries don't lack resources.

What they lack is a population that is capable of governing themselves.

 

Absolutely agree with you. And also the despots ruling these places treat all these countries like their private piggy banks!

 

I wish also the EU would stop the attempted ' mirage ' that the 27 countries have a say in all these migration policies or indeed Brexit negotiations, they don't!

 

They are bullied into the thinking of Germany and France all the time. Merkel wants burning at the stake for the damage she has inflicted on Europe without permission or seeking the views of the other member states.

1 hour ago, Morch said:

 

Syrians coming as refugees, getting monthly allowances and free homes in Europe, while taking their holidays in Syria.

Right....

Don't suppose there's actually something concrete to support this.

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4829332/Harsher-measures-against-holidaying-refugees.html

2 hours ago, TooPoopedToPop said:

Most of the migrant-producing countries don't lack resources.

What they lack is a population that is capable of governing themselves.

We don't agree on the resources issue.  The migrant-producing countries don't have forests, have little (if any) fresh water, nearly no soil.  Look at the things they either do without, or have to import.  It's almost everything.  If a person wanted to do something as simple as start a commercial vegetable garden, where would they go to grow things?   To a sand pit with no water?  

 

 

48 minutes ago, katana said:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4829332/Harsher-measures-against-holidaying-refugees.html

 

From the linked article:

 

Quote

While there is no official data on asylum seekers going back to their home countries on 'holiday', the issue has been a hot topic in Germany.

 

Doubt it is a common wide spread phenomenon.

"according to a draft statement that shows they have yet to put their money where their mouth is."

 

Wonder what they're waiting for? 

the topic has been apparent in austria, switzerland ,germany and sweden where thousands have been flying home to syria, iraq, somalia, eritrea at tax payers expense. in fact in most parts of syria now peace prevails 600.000 have returned home, hence all others can go too, helping to rebuild their country.

 

wbr

roobaa01

6 minutes ago, roobaa01 said:

the topic has been apparent in austria, switzerland ,germany and sweden where thousands have been flying home to syria, iraq, somalia, eritrea at tax payers expense. in fact in most parts of syria now peace prevails 600.000 have returned home, hence all others can go too, helping to rebuild their country.

 

wbr

roobaa01

 

Doubt there are indeed "thousands" flying. Doubt that it's directly "at tax payer expense". The situation in Syria isn't half as stable as claimed, and quite a few of these refugees will have reason to fear the regime.

to all said you can enrich your mind by searching through www.sputniknews.com

all syrians are illegal since they came from turkey, greece, italy thus secure countries.

the only reason they came illegally  to austria, germany, sweden is for more social welfare benefits.

 

wbr

roobaa01

2 minutes ago, roobaa01 said:

to all said you can enrich your mind by searching through www.sputniknews.com

all syrians are illegal since they came from turkey, greece, italy thus secure countries.

the only reason they came illegally  to austria, germany, sweden is for more social welfare benefits.

 

wbr

roobaa01

 

The source mentioned is controlled by the Russia. It is not usually suspected of being accurate and/or unbiased with pretty much anything, and more so with anything concerning Syria.

n 2016, the EU promised Turkey at least 3 billion euros over two years for the Syrian refugees it hosts in exchange for Ankara cutting off the migratory route to Greece. It has so far contracted to pay nearly 1.7 billion of that and disbursed 900 million.

 

  "The EU" sounds so wonderful. Unfortunately, is the money coming from too many taxpayers who continusley have less income because of certain politicians who do not pay one Rubel? 

Edited October 19, 20178 yr by jenny2017

Won't be long now until Farsi and Arabic are required language courses and the Quran required reading throughout European schools. Serves then right since they keep electing these baffoons. And yet they STILL criticize America for not following them over the cliff.

Work out the moneys they had made from these countries, and in some cases hundred's of years, compound the interest on that money and they should all kick in with some sizable cash. 

 

The oil money, armaments sale, land grabs; there are multi billionaires in these European countries that their wealth was built on pillaging countries of the wealth and resources. So are they entitled to get off from this? Tax'em hard.

On ‎19‎/‎10‎/‎2017 at 2:06 PM, boomerangutang said:

It's a tough situation. Two root causes: overpopulation and lack of resources in migrant-producing countries.

I thought it was the bombs? and which ethnic group u belong too for some?

On ‎19‎/‎10‎/‎2017 at 6:53 PM, roobaa01 said:

to all said you can enrich your mind by searching through www.sputniknews.com

all syrians are illegal since they came from turkey, greece, italy thus secure countries.

the only reason they came illegally  to austria, germany, sweden is for more social welfare benefits.

 

wbr

roobaa01

ISIS?

There are upwards of half a million Rohingya refugees in makeshift camps in Bangladesh. The camps are mostly flimsy constructions of bamboo and tarpaulins with an alarming lack of food, water and medical supplies. 

The dirt poor Bangladesh government cannot cope and NGOs are overwhelmed too. ASEAN has turned it's back on the matter.

Unless Western countries give significant assistance and PDQ, we should not be surprised if the Rohingya head over to the EU as a safe haven.

There is too much pontificating snd passing of censure motions and not enough positive action.

4 hours ago, mrwebb8825 said:

Won't be long now until Farsi and Arabic are required language courses and the Quran required reading throughout European schools. Serves then right since they keep electing these baffoons. And yet they STILL criticize America for not following them over the cliff.

Yes. all those  would-be muslim immigrants from Mexico and points south are potentially a terrible threat to the USA.

It was actually the French. They went in when Libya's Gadhafi wanted to use his own currency in Africa rather than the Franc as a main currency. So they got rid of him. From here ISIS was formed.

 

Where do you get your information from?

Posts reported and removed.