'We must convince other partners in bloc that EU's task is to protect external border and reduce illegal migration to a minimum,' says Polish Premier Donald Tusk
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Wednesday that Poland and the Czech Republic are jointly demanding reforms to the EU's current immigration policy.
“We must convince other partners in the bloc that the task of the EU is to protect the external border and reduce illegal migration to a minimum,” Tusk told a press conference in Prague alongside Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala. “It is a mistake to look for mechanisms to move illegal migrants back and forth within Europe," he added, a reference to Germany's recent decision to partially suspend Schengen rules, which normally mean open borders within the 27-member bloc.
“Every day thousands of soldiers fight against the pressure organized by (Belarus President Alexander) Lukashenko's regime,” he said, evidently referring to Belarus pushing migrants to Poland's borders.
“This is more like a war landscape, not a normal border policy. Shots are heard on this border every day, which is why the Polish strategy will certainly require changes in the paradigms of European policy. We will not give in, thank you for fully understanding this,” he added.
Tusk said that this Saturday Warsaw will announce its multi-year migration strategy to combat illegal migration, for the EU as a whole. “In this, Poland can count on the Czech Republic, the Czech Republic can count on Poland,” he said.
In April, the EU completed long-awaited reform of its migration and asylum policy, with regulations that make up the New Pact on Migration and Asylum based on "mandatory solidarity" that would give governments three options to manage asylum seekers: relocate some, pay €20,000 ($21,876) for each they reject, or finance operational support.
Poland and Hungary voted against the overall package of legislation, claiming it would force them to accept migrants against their will. The Czech Republic and Slovakia abstained on the majority of measures while Austria voted against them.
The pact only needed a qualified majority and thus was formally ratified.
MEPs on the right said the reform was too soft, while lawmakers on the left said it was too harsh and punitive. Amnesty International denounced it, warning it would degrade the quality of the asylum process.
"The Migration Pact is another nail in the coffin of the European Union. Unity is dead, secure borders are no more. Hungary will never give into the mass migration frenzy!" Prime Minister Viktor Orban said after the vote in April.
New asylum seekers continue to arrive in the EU seeking international protection. In 2023, the number of applications was 1.14 million, a seven-year high.
