The following is a statement on the European Union’s new migration policy by Leonidas Chrysanthopoulos, Ambassador ad honorem of Greece and a member of the Schiller Institute, who has been a featured speaker at several Schiller conferences and forums. Schiller Institute President Helga Zepp-LaRouche has strongly criticized the EU’s new policy, and Ambassador Chrysanthopoulos’ statement backs up her criticism.
“What Is Missing From the EU Commission’s Pact on Migration and Asylum”
“The European Commission submitted on Sept. 23 its proposal on a New Pact on Migration and Asylum that is included in eleven documents. The papers are quite technical and they deal primarily in managing in a proper way the influx in the EU of migrants, legal or illegal. The proposal is more of a defensive nature, meaning that it deals mainly with preventing migrants from entering the EU, or once having entered to return them to their country of origin. It is a useful proposal and its adoption might be helpful in reducing the number of migrants entering the EU illegally.
“However, very briefly and without going into details, the proposal deals with the reasons that people are leaving their countries to find what they think will be a better future in the EU. It must be reminded here that the EU’s policies towards Africa were not helpful in assisting the development of countries on that continent. The fishery policy of the EU resulted that many fishermen became unemployed and reverted to piracy in order to sustain their families. The proposal mentions:
“‘It is important to address the complex challenges of migration and its root causes,to the benefit of the EU and its citizens, partner countries, migrants and refugees themselves…. Different policies such as development cooperation, security, visa, trade, agriculture, investment and employment, energy, environment, and climate change and education should not be dealt in isolation.They are best handled as part of a tailored-made approach, at the core of a really mutual beneficial partnership…. (COM 2020) 609 final 23.9.2020 para.6.1).’
