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| Divided European leaders meet to devise plan to tackle refugee crisis | Divided European leaders meet to devise plan to tackle refugee crisis |
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| European heads of government have met in Brussels to try to hatch a common plan on refugees following months of recriminations and amid a sense of spiralling momentum of which the leaders have lost control. | |
| Related: EU governments push through divisive deal to share 120,000 refugees | Related: EU governments push through divisive deal to share 120,000 refugees |
| The emergency EU summit on Wednesday pitted the governments of central Europe against Germany and France after Berlin and Paris forced a new system of imposed refugee quotas on a recalcitrant east on Tuesday. There was talk of boycotts and threats to take the issue to court from the Czechs and Slovaks who were outvoted on Tuesday, while the EU’s most robust anti-immigration hardliner, Viktor Orban of Hungary, warned Chancellor Angela Merkel against any “moral imperialism” at the summit. | |
| Seldom have the EU’s leaders met so divided and in such a foul temper. And seldom have the stakes been higher in the need to forge common positions to cope with the crisis and to limit the damage from months of blame games. | Seldom have the EU’s leaders met so divided and in such a foul temper. And seldom have the stakes been higher in the need to forge common positions to cope with the crisis and to limit the damage from months of blame games. |
| “We have reached a critical point where we need to end the cycle of mutual recriminations and misunderstandings,” said Donald Tusk, the president of the European council who chaired the summit. “Our debate must be based on facts, not illusions and emotions.” | “We have reached a critical point where we need to end the cycle of mutual recriminations and misunderstandings,” said Donald Tusk, the president of the European council who chaired the summit. “Our debate must be based on facts, not illusions and emotions.” |
| Others expected precisely the opposite. “The discussion might be more than emotional,” said a senior EU diplomat. “We are facing brutal reality.” | Others expected precisely the opposite. “The discussion might be more than emotional,” said a senior EU diplomat. “We are facing brutal reality.” |
| The Czechs, Slovaks, Hungarians and Romanians are deeply indignant at being outvoted on one of the biggest and most toxic issues in national politics anywhere in Europe. | |
| Immigration has the potential to make or break governments in most of the countries and will probably contribute to a change of government in Poland next month. Warsaw broke with its central European allies to vote with the majority on Tuesday, forcing through mechanisms for the sharing of 120,000 refugees from Italy and Greece. Poland’s nationalist right is tipped to unseat the mainstream conservatives in next month’s election. The likely new prime minister, Beata Szydlo, denounced the Polish vote on Tuesday as a scandal and said her new government would reverse it. | |
| Tusk, who was the Polish prime minister until last year, was unusually blunt, signalling that he would read the riot act to the summit. He reserved his most caustic remarks for Merkel. | Tusk, who was the Polish prime minister until last year, was unusually blunt, signalling that he would read the riot act to the summit. He reserved his most caustic remarks for Merkel. |
| “We are talking about millions of potential refugees trying to reach Europe, not thousands,” he said. “It is likely that more refugees towards Europe will flow, not less. Especially since almost all of them feel invited to Europe.” | “We are talking about millions of potential refugees trying to reach Europe, not thousands,” he said. “It is likely that more refugees towards Europe will flow, not less. Especially since almost all of them feel invited to Europe.” |
| That sounded like criticism of Merkel’s open-door policy towards Syrian refugees which in recent weeks has triggered a stampede towards Germany through Serbia, Hungary, Croatia, and Austria. The European commission on Wednesday said for the first time that Germany’s policy had led to the collapse of the Dublin convention, a pillar of Europe’s fragmented asylum policies. | That sounded like criticism of Merkel’s open-door policy towards Syrian refugees which in recent weeks has triggered a stampede towards Germany through Serbia, Hungary, Croatia, and Austria. The European commission on Wednesday said for the first time that Germany’s policy had led to the collapse of the Dublin convention, a pillar of Europe’s fragmented asylum policies. |
| “We must prepare a concrete plan, which must finally appear in place of the arguments and the chaos we have witnessed in the last weeks. This plan must be our common plan,” said Tusk. “Nobody will be outvoted.” | “We must prepare a concrete plan, which must finally appear in place of the arguments and the chaos we have witnessed in the last weeks. This plan must be our common plan,” said Tusk. “Nobody will be outvoted.” |
| Wednesday’s summit focused on “Fortress Europe” measures to try to stem the flow of refugees and migrants. Almost half a million people have arrived in Europe this year. Money was the key instrument, with the leaders pledging millions for the transit countries, the international aid agencies, and up to €1bn (£730m) for Turkey, home to up to 2 million Syrian refugees and whence, via Greece, most people are moving to the EU. | |
| David Cameron committed to spending another £100m supporting refugees in camps bordering Syria. Arriving in Brussels, the UK prime minister said £40m of the additional cash would go to support the underfunded World Food Programme. “We must make sure that people in refugee camps are properly fed, and looked after, not least to help them but also to stop people wanting to make or thinking of making this very, very difficult and very dangerous journey to Europe,” he said. | David Cameron committed to spending another £100m supporting refugees in camps bordering Syria. Arriving in Brussels, the UK prime minister said £40m of the additional cash would go to support the underfunded World Food Programme. “We must make sure that people in refugee camps are properly fed, and looked after, not least to help them but also to stop people wanting to make or thinking of making this very, very difficult and very dangerous journey to Europe,” he said. |
| Orban declared that the Greeks were incapable of securing their own frontier and that the EU should take control of Greece’s borders with Turkey. | Orban declared that the Greeks were incapable of securing their own frontier and that the EU should take control of Greece’s borders with Turkey. |
| Jean-Claude Juncker, the president of the European commission, flush with victory following the endorsement of his proposals on refugee quotas, was expected to propose a battery of European policies including the eventual creation of a system of European border and coast guards. That would entail national governments forfeiting authority, at least partially, over their borders and will be highly contentious. | Jean-Claude Juncker, the president of the European commission, flush with victory following the endorsement of his proposals on refugee quotas, was expected to propose a battery of European policies including the eventual creation of a system of European border and coast guards. That would entail national governments forfeiting authority, at least partially, over their borders and will be highly contentious. |
| “Closing borders and building fences is no solution,” said Juncker. “By the end of the year I will propose reinforcing [EU borders agency] Frontex and expanding it into a fully functioning borders and coast guard authority.” | “Closing borders and building fences is no solution,” said Juncker. “By the end of the year I will propose reinforcing [EU borders agency] Frontex and expanding it into a fully functioning borders and coast guard authority.” |
| Diplomats predicted constitutional problems on this issue which would intrude into national sovereignty. “Many countries will have problems,” said one. | Diplomats predicted constitutional problems on this issue which would intrude into national sovereignty. “Many countries will have problems,” said one. |
| Dimitris Avramopoulos, the commissioner for migration issues, argued that there was no substantive resistance to the idea among member states. | Dimitris Avramopoulos, the commissioner for migration issues, argued that there was no substantive resistance to the idea among member states. |
| Turkey has quickly emerged as the lynchpin of European attempts to contain and manage the crisis, putting Ankara in a strong bargaining position. | Turkey has quickly emerged as the lynchpin of European attempts to contain and manage the crisis, putting Ankara in a strong bargaining position. |
| There are no obvious reasons why Turkey’s mercurial and authoritarian leader, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, should do the Europeans any favours. Ankara has taken in nearly 2 million Syrians who have now been there for years. It has spent billions on the operations and is unlikely to be impressed with offers of EU financial support. | |
| “I don’t know if money will be enough,” said the senior diplomat. One incentive for Erdoğan would be relaxing visa requirements for Turks coming to Europe, but the Europeans, especially east European governments increasingly resorting to anti-Muslim rhetoric, would balk at this. | |
| Tusk has just returned from Turkey and the Middle East. He said: “I realised that our partners are expecting our help to solve their refugee problems rather than thinking of how they can help us.” | Tusk has just returned from Turkey and the Middle East. He said: “I realised that our partners are expecting our help to solve their refugee problems rather than thinking of how they can help us.” |