But “the most sensitive discussion” between member states “will certainly be that on immigration”, assures a senior official, who fears that the Europeans will not be able to agree on this aspect in the final declaration. In May, the European Union adopted the migration and asylum pact, supposed to come into force in mid-2026, with a tightening of “filtering” at borders and a solidarity mechanism between the 27 in the care of asylum seekers. .
“Innovative solutions”
But migration issues are coming back to shake up the agenda, pushed in particular by far-right parties, on the rise in many European countries. Several governments have raised their voices, including in Germany and France, and are calling for the rules on the expulsion of irregular migrants to be simplified. The “Franco-German engine pushes us to act”, underlines a European diplomat. The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, agreed with them on Monday in a letter to the 27. She is proposing a new law which would revise the 2008 “return directive”, in order to facilitate deportations at the borders.
A similar initiative failed in 2018, but “six years later, the debate has evolved”, “towards the right” of the political spectrum, notes a European official. In her letter, Ursula von der Leyen even invites us to “explore” “innovative solutions”, such as “return hubs”, reception centers outside the European Union where migrants would be returned. The head of the European executive wants to draw “lessons” from the controversial agreement sealed by Giorgia Meloni’s Italy with Albania, where centers are just starting to receive migrants arrested in Italian waters. These “hubs” are supported by the Hungary of nationalist Viktor Orbán, at the head of the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union until the end of December and who will host the next summit on November 8 in Budapest.
“No plan”
At European level, this is just a simple, flammable avenue of work, and Spain has already made it known that it is opposed to it. Cautiously, France invites us to “promote returns when conditions permit”, “rather than organizing returns to hubs in third countries”, according to the Élysée. The discussion is “very vague and preliminary”, there is “no” plan “on these hubs,” adds a European diplomat, who does not expect “any major decisions” from this summit. On international issues, Thursday’s meeting will once again be marked by the war in Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelensky will come to Brussels to present his plan for victory against Russia.
EU countries are emphasizing their support for kyiv and want to “penalize the Russian war effort as much as possible,” insists a European diplomatic source. They planned to lend Ukraine up to 35 billion euros, financed by exceptional profits generated by Russian assets frozen in Europe. On the subject of the Middle East, where the Israeli army is intensifying its air raids in Lebanon, the call for de-escalation is a shared concern within the 27. But the European Union has been affected by deep differences since the attack on Palestinian Hamas against Israel on October 7, 2023. Countries like Hungary, Austria and the Czech Republic defend Israel’s right to defend itself and block the adoption of strong measures against the Israeli authorities.
