Refugee policy – a clear breakthrough in the EU: tightening asylum rules

After years of wrangling, EU countries have apparently agreed to toughen EU asylum rules. Specifically, on Thursday in Luxembourg, EU interior ministers dealt with the distribution of asylum seekers in the European Union and the initial checks of asylum applications for people at European external borders with little chance of obtaining the right to stay. To obtain the final text of the law, EU countries must now enter into negotiations with the EU Parliament.

In a public meeting, Interior Minister Gerhard Karner called the result “a good step forward”. Postscript: “But we also need to take more steps.” The current system isn’t working, Karner says, “It was and had to be improved.”

In light of the large number of asylum applications and the upcoming EU elections in June 2024, many EU countries have pushed for a quick solution. However, negotiations between EU interior ministers were difficult. Countries such as Austria, Italy and Germany have called for improvements at various points.

Once the agreement is reached, negotiations can begin with the EU Parliament. A compromise of the entire asylum and migration agreement, which provides for many regulations, is due to be reached before the 2024 European elections. (APA)