New direction in the European immigration crisis?

(Baonghean) - Germany has just announced the relaxation of asylum regulations for Syrians who want to immigrate to Europe on August 26. This move was made just a few days after talks between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande. Accordingly, the two sides agreed on the view of redistributing the quota for accepting migrants in a more equitable manner. So, with the willingness of countries like Germany to share, can Europe hope to find a new direction in the immigration crisis?

A surprising decision

Germany will not return Syrian asylum seekers to the European Union (EU) ports where they first arrived on their journey to the continent, the country’s statement said. According to Natasha Bertaud, spokeswoman for the European Commission (EC), Germany’s decision is a recognition that some member states cannot be left alone to deal with the growing wave of asylum seekers.

Germany has thus become the first EU member state to simplify asylum procedures for those forced to evacuate due to war or conflict. In addition, the German government has just announced that it will double the support fund for cities that have to receive a large number of migrants this year. International public opinion was quite surprised by this move of Germany, because the migration crisis is currently considered the biggest challenge for this country since the reunification of the East and West.

According to the latest figures, the number of asylum seekers in Germany could reach 800,000 in 2015, equivalent to 1% of the country's population. Like many other European countries, immigrants were previously accepted easily due to labor shortages. However, the recent surge in numbers has left Germany struggling with the financial burden of supporting immigrants, along with a series of social security and welfare issues stemming from the significant cultural differences between immigrants and natives.

That is why for more than a year now, far-right groups with xenophobic ideology have been growing strongly in Germany. In this context, the relaxation of asylum regulations for Syrians wishing to immigrate to Europe is considered a surprising and courageous decision by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, even though this may be part of her calculation to affirm the leading position of this country in solving thorny issues in the region.

Syrian refugees line up to check in at Berlin. Photo: AP

Under previous European rules, migrants could only apply for asylum in the first country they arrived in. That meant Greece and Italy – two major landing spots for migrant boats – faced chaos if they failed to cope with the influx.

This risk has become real in recent days, when a series of countries located in the transitional position between Italy and Greece with Western European countries have taken drastic measures to prevent the flow of immigrants: Hungary erected barbed wire fences and announced that it would stop accepting asylum applications; Macedonia declared a state of emergency, closed the entire southern border area, and allowed riot police to use tear gas to repel the flow of immigrants; Bulgaria announced that it was ready to mobilize armed forces to the southwestern border area adjacent to Greece and Macedonia...

With more than 200,000 migrants entering Europe in just the first 7 months of the year, of which 135,000 landed in the “mythical land” of Greece, the rest mainly landed in Italy, this is truly a “nightmare” for these two countries if the refugee burden is not shared. Therefore, before Germany’s unexpected move, European gateway countries such as Italy and Greece will surely “breathe a sigh of relief”, and Southern European transit countries will also be able to somewhat relieve the burden.

However, whether Germany's approach will receive the approval of other European countries is another story, because the allocation of immigrant quotas is still an issue on which the countries of the "old continent" have not been able to find consensus.

Is Europe no longer divided?

The most unprecedented and severe crisis since World War II - that's how people talk about the current migration crisis in Europe. While conflicts and instability in the Middle East and North Africa continue, hundreds of thousands of refugees are still trying to find a way to reach the "promised land" of Europe. European leaders have held many summits to find a solution to the immigration problem. However, the biggest obstacle between countries is the plan to distribute 40,000 immigrants to show solidarity and share the burden with the countries on the front lines of the crisis.

The spirit of solidarity and sharing that European leaders have proposed has received consensus in principle, but when put into practice, it has witnessed deep divisions. Some countries oppose mandatory quotas, refusing to accept more refugees due to the stagnant domestic economy and high unemployment. In addition to being divided over the quotas for allocating refugees, European countries are also not unified in their approach to the issue, with one side creating conditions for immigrants in a humanitarian spirit and the other side tightening regulations on the flow of immigrants.

While Germany is ready to relax its immigration rules, Britain is taking the opposite approach, introducing a series of tough policies against illegal immigrants. British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond once stated that migrants are threatening the EU’s living standards as well as the social fabric of the union, so Europe cannot just “open its arms” to welcome millions of people looking for a new life.

In that context, Germany's new move to relax asylum regulations for migrants may be good news for those seeking to reach the "old continent", good news for gateway countries such as Greece and Italy, but whether this policy will gain consensus and support from other countries or create a precedent for other countries to follow is still an open question and will take some time to predict.

But according to experts' analysis, whatever the outcome, the most important issue for European leaders is to have a common strategy to support the resolution of the unstable political situation in the Middle East and North Africa, to solve the crisis from the "root" and not just struggle with the "tip".

Thuy Ngoc