Therefore, the conclave conclusions do not mention the discussion on this issue, but the President of the Municipal Council, Charles Michel, issued a note on his behalf detailing the positions presented.
The bloc’s interior ministers agreed days ago by a qualified majority but not unanimously to reform the system for accepting migrants and granting asylum.
Hungary and Poland yesterday argued that this option was unacceptable and announced that they would block any drafting of the summit’s conclusions unless the requirement for unanimity is taken into account.
However, the agreement still has to be negotiated with the European Parliament and the states of the Union and stipulates that the member countries must accept a certain number of asylum seekers or make a financial contribution of 20,000 euros.
In this context, the President of the European Commission (EC), Ursula von der Leyen, expressed confidence that Spain will be able to conclude the negotiations during her presidency of the Community Council from July 1st.
“We are counting on the Spanish Presidency for a successful conclusion of the pact,” said Von der Leyen at a press conference at the end of the summit.
For his part, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez pointed out that the main difficulty lies in finding a balance between responsibility and solidarity, “the two central pillars in the migration issue”.
I think that’s the mother of all disagreements. And of course also that such relevant questions are not decided unanimously; This led to the blockade, emphasized the President at the end of the meeting.
It should be remembered that due to the lack of a common policy on this issue, each country in the EU is confronted with this scourge according to its own rules, a fact that leaves those who arrive on Community territory looking for a better future.
At the meeting, the head of Europe’s executive later stressed that migration was “a common challenge that requires a European response” and praised the progress made by home affairs ministers.
Von der Leyen explained that the Commission is working in parallel on various operational measures to solve “the most pressing challenges”.
He stressed that the EU wants to put an end to criminal networks and develop alternative ways to break up the business of migrant smugglers.
For his part, the President of the European Council considered that, despite the difficulties, progress had been made on migration policy, supported by a “broad majority of the community”.
Thousands now die every year attempting to set foot on European soil via the various land and sea routes, a fact denounced and denied by international organizations and human rights organisations.
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