Belgium, (Brussels Morning Newspaper) EU leaders discussed ways to curb illegal migration on Thursday, with some calling for more border walls and surveillance on EU’s external borders.
Other leaders proposed sending more money to non-EU countries to improve living conditions there and try to limit illegal migration that way, according to Reuters reporting on Thursday.
Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Ireland and the Netherlands expressed concerns about the rising number of illegal crossings, pointing out that approximately 330,000 were recorded last year.
“European countries are experiencing a big increase in the number of people who are coming from outside Europe on an irregular basis,” Irish PM Leo Vardakar observed.
“It’s important that we, as Europeans decide who enters our countries, not the human traffickers… those who gain refugee status have the right to remain but others don’t, and they should be returned,” he pointed out.
Approach to illegal migration has been a contentious topic since 2015, when than one million people entered the bloc and member states debated whether and how to provide for them.
EU split
As bloc members failed to reach an agreement, those who were against the influx tightened their borders and their critics described the move as inhumane.
According to an EU Parliament report, EU member states maintained more than 2,000 kilometres of border walls last year, up from approximately 300 kilometres in 2014.
Last year, the number of migrants who entered the bloc illegally reached the highest level since 2016, prompting calls for tighter border control.
Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer stressed “we need to ‘pull the brake’ on illegal migration in the EU… we need money for it, no matter if you call it a fence or border infrastructure.”
He pointed out that Bulgaria needs EU help to control its border and concluded “every fence is only as good as there is effective surveillance.”
The European Commission has been rejecting calls for financing border walls, but has provided money for other border infrastructure including surveillance equipment.The Netherlands proposed aid and visa restrictions for uncooperative countries, Italy called for sending money to African countries, Hungary proposed to build more walls and France called for fighting poverty and terrorism outside the bloc.
