EU ministers disagree on immigration quotas

(Baonghean.vn) - European Union governments have failed to reach an agreement on how to divide tens of thousands of migrants pouring into southern Italy from northern Africa, raising concerns in Rome - which will have to deal with the Mediterranean migrant crisis.

Migrants at the port of Catania on Tuesday, June 16. Photo: AP

Interior ministers from the 28 member states met in Luxembourg and postponed decisions on proposals from Brussels for a new system to share the migrant burden through a mandatory quota system. The proposals, put forward by the European Commission last month, call for a fair distribution among EU countries of 40,000 refugees arriving in Italy and Greece.

“There is a difference of opinion,” said Latvian Interior Minister Rihards Kozlovskis, who chaired the meeting. “There is no common view on voluntary and compulsory.” The proposed policy would share refugees in a compulsory way, but the opposition, mainly in eastern Europe, wants the program to be voluntary.

There are tensions between Italy and France and Austria – which have closed their borders to stop migrants moving north. While ministers met in Luxembourg, hundreds of migrants were camped on the French-Italian border, unable to cross into Italian territory.

Dimitris Avramopoulos, the European Commissioner in charge of the issue, sought to calm the mood after a meeting that ended in five hours of wrangling and no agreement. "For me, it was a success," he said. "There is no room for criticism."

The immigration issue - one of the most contentious in the politics of the countries involved - will be taken up at an EU summit in Brussels next week. The conference will continue discussions at the end of July.

Phuong Thao

(According to The Guardian)