preview

The Eu Summit On Immigration And Asylum Policy

Decent Essays

1. Statement of Issue/Problem The general topic of the EU Summit is reforms on immigration and asylum policy within the EU, specifically regarding the Schengen agreement and the Dublin II Regulation. France, Denmark, and Netherlands propose to alter the Schengen area agreement in order to allow member states a greater amount of control over their national borders in the event of a sudden influx of third country nationals arriving to the country without authorization. Debate over the effectiveness of the Dublin II Regulation has led to the proposal of reforms that would more evenly distribute the amount of asylum seekers across member states in order to relieve the burden that external border countries face under the current policy. As a …show more content…

Sweden also supports most EU efforts to integrate at the EU level and sees common policies as the best way to increase the EU’s standing as a global power (“Major Issues”). Sweden would like to see greater involvement amongst member states in asylum seekers and immigrants as Sweden accepts 5.7 applicants to 1,000 inhabitants compared to 1.3 in Germany (“Asylum”). The proposed reform to redistribute asylum seekers evenly based on a member states’ population would accomplish this. (“Harmonizing”). Sweden has served as one of the leading countries in terms of humanitarian efforts as sees both asylum and enlargement policy as a tool within the EU to promote human rights. Sweden maintains a quota of 1,900 refugees annually, higher than any other member state, and calls for other EU member states to increase their quotas to match based on national population and economic capability (“Major Issues”). New programs to modify and attempt to coordinate immigration policy have been supported by Sweden. The Stockholm Program refocuses EU efforts to combat illegal immigration and provide greater support and assistance of the external border nations such as Italy and Greece (Collett). Sweden’s coordinated-market economy and floating currency have been able to regain strength after the Euro Crisis;

Get Access