Migrants walk along a border wall in the northern town of Fnideq in an attempt to cross the border from Morocco to the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, in North Africa
BRUSSELS - New tools to protect the external borders of the European Union from migrant flows, including with European funding for border walls, have been requested by the ministers of interior of 12 countries (Austria, Cyprus, Denmark, Greece, Lithuania, Poland, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia and Slovakia) in a letter addressed to the European Commission and the rotating presidency of the European Council. The issue of tightening the Union's external borders will be discussed at a meeting of interior ministers of the 27 members on Friday in Luxembourg.
In the letter to the Commission and the rotating presidency of the EU Council, the 12 countries asked for "new tools allowing to avoid, rather than confront afterwards, the grave consequences of overburdened migration and asylum systems and drained hosting capabilities that in the end negatively affect confidence in the ability to act with decision when necessary".
"At the same time - a passage of the document also said - these European solutions should aim to safeguard the common asylum system by reducing pull factors".
Med5 to EU, progress on cooperation with third countries
BRUSSELS - The ministers of interior of the Med5 - Italy, Spain, Malta, Greece, Cyprus - in a letter to Brussels asked for an acceleration on cooperation with third countries on migrants, repatriations and the management of external borders, in parallel with talks on the Pact on asylum.
In the document, dated October 5, "further efforts" are demanded "in collaboration with countries of origin and transit on matters of common interest" with "tangible progress in funding" and "more concreteness and certainty on the path" in the short term, in terms "of days or weeks".
