Verbatim report of proceedings

Wednesday, 14 June 2023 - Strasbourg

4. Preparation of the European Council meeting of 29-30 June 2023, in particular in the light of recent steps towards concluding the Migration Pact (debate)

  Der Präsident. – Als nächster Punkt der Tagesordnung folgt die Aussprache über die Erklärungen des Rates und der Kommission zur Vorbereitung der Tagung des Europäischen Rates am 29./30. Juni 2023, insbesondere vor dem Hintergrund der jüngsten Schritte hin zum Abschluss des Migrationspakts (2023/2678(RSP)).

  Jessika Roswall, President-in-Office of the Council. – Mr President, honourable Members, Vice-President, on 29 and 30 June, the European Council convene to deal with Ukraine, the economy, security and defence, as well as migration. Leaders will also discuss China and prepare the summit in July with Latin America and the Caribbean. The meeting will start with the customary exchange with the President of this House.

Ukraine remains top of our European agenda. Let me begin by expressing my gratitude for the European Parliament’s resolute and unwavering support. President Zelenskyy is expected to address the European Council via video link, and leaders will take stock of the latest development in Russia’s war of aggression.

Last week we witnessed the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam, which has devastating consequences for thousands of Ukrainians and the entire communities. Innocent people have been deprived of their homes and their livelihood. Too many have lost their lives. The disaster would not have happened if Russia had not started this illegal war of aggression against Ukraine.

In spite of all this, the Ukrainian spirit and determination grows stronger each day. It is truly remarkable that Ukraine has been able to move forward on its reform efforts under these extremely difficult circumstances. We have said it before, but we say it again: Ukraine’s future is within the European Union.

During this semester, the Union has taken important decisions to accelerate support for Ukraine. We have continued to put pressure on Russia by adopting the 10th sanction package. Let me assure you that the Swedish Presidency is working tirelessly on package number 11. We are progressing on how much to use Russian frozen, immobilised assets, and we do it in close cooperation with our partners and allies in the G7. We are moving towards EU agreement on a judicial solution regarding Russia’s crime of aggression. We have provided ammunition to Ukraine and we have decided to procure ammunition together. We are also working on the Act in Support of Ammunition Production to strengthen our industry capacity.

On the economic agenda, leaders will follow up their conclusions on industrial policy and on the single market and Europe’s long-term competitiveness and productivity. As you know, European competitiveness is a core priority of the Swedish Council Presidency. Our economic policies have long been decided by short-term crisis management, public interventions and aid packages, such as the reaction of COVID-19 and the US Inflation Reduction Act.

Over the last four decades, our growth rates have been modest compared to the United States. European productivity is lower than other major economies and perhaps, even more, we continue to spend less on research and development. Europe needs a long-term approach, and this spring has marked an important step towards such an approach. The Commission forcefully responded to the European Council’s request for a strategy to boost competitiveness and productivity, and the strategy puts the internal market, R&D, skills, access to private capital and better regulation at the core of EU policies. Reversing trends will take dedicated actions overseen by leaders over many years, and we hope that we can count on Parliament’s support.

On security and defence, the European Council will take stock of the progress of the implementation of its previous conclusions and give further guidance on the Union’s security and defence capacity. Leaders will discuss the reinforcements of our defence industry through the Common Procurement Act (EDIRPA) and the Act in Support of Ammunition Production (ASAP). They are also expected to welcome the approval of civilian Common Security and Defence Policy compact.

In the presence of Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, the European Council will discuss EU-NATO cooperation ahead of the NATO summit in Vilnius. Moreover, the European Council will hold a strategic discussion on China. Unity and determination will strengthen the effectiveness and credibility of our relations with China. In the EU, we need to formulate our own open but firm approach to global affairs and also rely on strong partnership with the US and other democracies. Our own societies must rest on a solid base in terms of economy and democracy. We need strategic unity in defence, defending openness and cooperation, while addressing vulnerabilities and excessive dependencies with security implications. That is de-risking in practice.

Ladies and gentlemen, the European Council will also once again come back to the issue of migration and not at least the external dimension. President von der Leyen’s visit to Tunisia, along with Prime Minister Meloni and Prime Minister Rutte, reaffirms the leaders’ commitment to working with partners. The Presidency and the Commission will inform the implementation of the conclusions on migration from February and March. This time it will be in a positive spirit of the new deal of the migration pact in the Council. The Swedish Presidency has worked hard for this and we are proud that the Council is now ready to go into final stages and find a compromise between the co-legislators. We urgently need a deal that can deliver results.

Mr President, if you allow me, since this is my last and final Strasbourg session as Presidency, I also want to take the opportunity to say thank you and express my gratitude to be able to represent the Council in this Chamber. I am convinced, and maybe even more after these six months, that the only way forward is a strong, respectful and sincere cooperation between the Council and Parliament.

The Swedish Presidency has worked very hard on advancing our common political agenda and I do truly thank Parliament for a high level of commitment from your side. With that, I would like to say thank you for your attention and looking forward to the debate.

  Der Präsident. – Frau Roswall, der Dank liegt auch bei uns.

Danke für Ihr Engagement, Ihre ständige Präsenz und Ihre Offenheit im Dialog mit dem Europäischen Parlament – nicht nur in diesem Hause, sondern auch bei den Begegnungen, die wir gemeinsam in der Zusammenarbeit mit den nationalen Parlamenten hatten. Herzlichen Dank und alles Gute.

  Maroš Šefčovič, Vice-President of the Commission. – Mr President, Madam Minister, dear Jessika, honourable members of the European Parliament, the last European Council before the summer break comes at an important moment in time. Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine rages on with the destruction of Kakhovka Dam, leading to an unprecedented human and ecological disaster. The Ukrainian counteroffensive is now under way and leaders will no doubt look at the developments very closely. They will discuss the situation on the ground and all aspects of our continued, unwavering and multifaceted support, including on Ukraine’s peace formula, sanctions and sanctions enforcement, frozen assets, military assistance, Russia’s accountability, and a brief point on enlargement based on the Commission’s oral report to be presented at the informal meeting of the General Affairs Council on 21 and 22 June.

If you allow me to proceed with economic matters, the Commission will put forward a communication on European economic security next week, which will help steer the leaders’ discussion. In line with the March European Council conclusions, the Commission will also update the leaders on the progress made since the adoption of the long-term competitiveness communication on 16 March, including on discussions with the US on the effects of the Inflation Reduction Act. As you know, there are a number of concrete proposals on the table to further strengthen the single market and the competitiveness of our industry, and we are very happy to work on all of them with both co-legislators. I am talking about the Critical Raw Materials Act, about Net-zero Industry Act, about the Artificial Intelligence Act and Data Act. All of them are very important for the competitiveness of the European economy and we are very much looking forward to continue progressing on this file with both co-legislators.

Following the review in November 2022, in April the Commission presented proposals to implement the most comprehensive reform of the EU’s economic governance rules since the aftermath of the financial crisis. The measures are designed to strengthen public debt sustainability while promoting sustainable and inclusive growth through reforms and investment in all Member States. With a general escape clause set to expire at the end of 2023, we hope leaders will encourage further work on this issue in the Council. Leaders will also endorse integrated country specific recommendations and conclude the 2023 European Semester.

And finally, the Commission’s proposals on the review of the Multiannual Financial Framework to be published next week, will feed into the leaders first discussion on the matter with a view to steering the work of the Council.

I think that the external issues have been excellently covered by Minister Jessika Roswall. I would just add that we will also prepare in a great depth the discussion of the leader on the agenda for Latin America and Caribbean, but also on our overall relationship with China, and will also provide the material for the discussions on the relations with partners in Mediterranean, in particular Tunisia.

So if you allow me, Mr. President, I would now proceed to the topic of particular interest of the plenary today and this is migration. The approach we have pursued so far delivers results. On addressing the day to day migration challenges, we have come up with concrete operational actions, actions which started to have an impact in terms of fewer irregular arrivals, more effective returns and the fight against smuggling that risks human lives for profit. At the same time, we are working on increasing legal pathways to support third countries with capacity-building measures. We appreciate the intense work on the legislative track. The political agreement reached by the ministers at the Justice and Home Affairs Council last week on the general approach on the New Pact on Migration and Asylum is indeed a major step. It demonstrated that this is an area where Member States could find a large qualified majority in support for two key pillars of the pact. I am talking about the Asylum and Migration Management Regulation and the Asylum Procedure Regulation. The Commission welcomes the political agreement reached by the Member States because this is a real breakthrough after years of intense negotiations and I would like to thank the Swedish presidency for that wholeheartedly. Trilogues on these two pillars of the pact have started right away this week with a first good trilogue, and it is our joint duty to deliver on the reform of our migration policy. And now we have the momentum to do so. President von der Leyen will send again a letter to the leaders ahead of the European Council outlining the progress on operational measures and taking stock of the work of the co-legislators. The Commission welcomes the important steps taken by the co-legislators under the Joint Roadmap, with a clear goal to adopt the Pact before the end of the mandate. And this comes in addition to the provisional agreements already found on three other pillars of the pact, like the Reception Conditions Directive, Qualification Regulation and the Resettlement Framework Regulations, while trilogues started already on Eurodac and Screening Regulation. And I would like to comment and thank the European Parliament for having adopted its negotiation mandates on key files of the pact already in April. Because we know that this is massive, massive work be it on screening, regulation, asylum and migration management regulation, asylum procedure, regulation and the crisis proposals. But this just proves and shows that a large majority across the political groups supports this reform. The position of co-legislators offers a good foundation for the negotiations and therefore interinstitutional negotiations should now intensify. It is essential that we all remain committed and open to compromise, to create a fairer, more efficient and sustainable system for asylum and migration management, and to show that with trust and cooperation, we can meet and master our common challenges.

So I will stop here, but before I will do that, I also would like to thank Jessika, the team of the Swedish presidency, for excellent co-operation, not only here in the European Parliament, but we are also sitting together in the General Affairs Council. Thank you for great work and your personal commitment.

  Paulo Rangel, em nome do Grupo PPE. – Senhor Presidente, Senhora Ministra, Senhor Vice-Presidente, antes de mais queria, naturalmente, agradecer e saudar a Presidência sueca pela forma absolutamente impecável como presidiu à União Europeia durante este semestre.

Queria também dizer que, neste Conselho, é fundamental reforçar o apoio à Ucrânia, depois do ataque brutal à barragem no rio Dniepre que levou à catástrofe humana, levou a um crime de guerra e, em particular, a um desastre ecológico.

Temos também de olhar para a revisão do MFF, neste Conselho Europeu, que é crucial no sentido de dotar a União Europeia de meios para enfrentar os problemas que tem por diante nos próximos três ou quatro anos. E, finalmente, a prioridade que se deve dar neste momento à América Latina.

Mas, vindo diretamente ao ponto que consideramos fundamental, depois deste avanço no Pacto das Migrações, importa recordar, a este respeito, aquilo que disse o Papa João XXIII a propósito da dignidade humana: «todo o ser humano é uma pessoa». Portanto, a dignidade humana obriga-nos a defender o tratamento digno dos refugiados, dos requerentes de asilo, dos migrantes, daqueles que procuram trabalho e chegam às nossas fronteiras.

Ao contrário do que defendem certos grupos políticos, isso só é possível garantindo fronteiras seguras, protegendo e controlando adequadamente as nossas fronteiras. Só desse modo se combate o tráfico ilegal de pessoas, que é, esse sim, uma violação dos direitos humanos. Só desse modo se consegue desencorajar e diminuir as travessias perigosas e trágicas no mar e no deserto, que, essas sim, violam os direitos humanos. Só desse modo se pode acabar com o acantonamento de pessoas em apartamentos, seja em Estocolmo, seja em Lisboa, em que há 20 e 30 pessoas por quarto ou por casa. Isto, sim, é violar os direitos humanos.

Portanto, defender os direitos humanos e a dignidade das pessoas exige combater o tráfico ilegal, exige proteção das fronteiras. Só desse modo se porá fim à instrumentalização de migrantes que hoje está em todo o Nordeste europeu, mas que também aflora de tempos em tempos na Turquia.

Tudo isto, como ainda na semana passada demonstrou a presidente da Comissão com a sua visita à Tunísia com dois chefes de governo, só é possível se houver uma cooperação estreita, sistemática, com os países terceiros. Por um lado, para a ajuda ao desenvolvimento que fixará as populações e, por outro lado, para ajudar a lidar com os fluxos migratórios, combater o tráfico ilegal, preparar condições de acolhimento, etc.

Nós temos, na verdade, de nos congratular com este passo que foi dado. Ele, no entanto, não chega. Vamos, agora, para uma fase decisiva de negociação entre o Conselho e o Parlamento, com a mediação da Comissão. Mas creio que demos um passo decisivo para restaurar a confiança dos cidadãos europeus na União Europeia e para garantir que todos os migrantes e os cidadãos europeus vivam em dignidade e em pleno exercício dos seus direitos.

  Iratxe García Pérez, en nombre del Grupo S&D. – Señor presidente, la destrucción de la presa de Nova Kajovka es un crimen de guerra que muestra el intento desesperado de Putin por ganar una guerra que ya hace mucho tiempo que ha perdido. Son todavía incalculables los efectos destructivos de la presa sobre la economía de Ucrania, sus pueblos, sus ciudades, su agricultura, su población desplazada y su medio ambiente.

Pero lo que sí debemos tener claro es quién debe pagar las reparaciones de guerra. Ha llegado la hora de utilizar los miles de millones de activos rusos congelados y propiedades de oligarcas sancionados para pagar los daños de la invasión. El pago de Putin por los daños causados no es solo un acto de justicia con el pueblo ucraniano, sino también con nuestros ciudadanos. Porque nuestras sociedades también pagan las consecuencias de la guerra con la subida de los precios. Por nuestros ciudadanos y ciudadanas, debemos seguir tomando decisiones valientes.

Nuestra ciudadanía merece una reforma del mercado eléctrico para garantizar precios razonables. Merece que avancemos en la reindustrialización de la Unión Europea para alcanzar la autonomía estratégica y merece una reforma de la gobernanza económica con reglas fiscales más claras y más flexibles que garanticen la estabilidad presupuestaria con el necesario crecimiento de la economía. En definitiva, nuestras sociedades merecen una transición verde y digital sin renunciar a las grandes conquistas sociales.

En plena transformación de nuestra Unión ¿hacia dónde se dirige la derecha? Ahora el Partido Popular Europeo se deja arrastrar por la extrema derecha para declarar la guerra a la Ley de Restauración de la Naturaleza, una ley indispensable para reparar el 80 % de las aguas y las tierras degradadas. Los socialdemócratas nos opondremos a la contrarreforma de la Agenda Verde que intentan instaurar las fuerzas más reaccionarias. Porque la emergencia climática mata a las personas y destruye la prosperidad económica. Más de 300 000 europeos mueren al año de forma prematura por la mala calidad del aire. En momentos en que Italia está padeciendo terribles inundaciones y España sufre graves sequías, el negacionismo de la derecha y la extrema derecha es totalmente inaceptable. Señorías, la ciencia es clara. La protección del medio ambiente aumentará nuestra resistencia ante fenómenos meteorológicos extremos.

Señores del Partido Popular, ahora que han decidido ignorar la memoria histórica para abrazar los valores de la ultraderecha, ¿hasta dónde están dispuestos a llegar? Además de su negacionismo climático, ¿reforzarán la alianza con los Gobiernos ultras de Polonia y Hungría que violan los derechos de las mujeres y las minorías? ¿Abandonarán los derechos humanos con su oposición a la Directiva de diligencia debida para impedir que las multinacionales utilicen como mano de obra a niños y niñas en cualquier lugar del mundo? ¿Seguirán fomentando el sentimiento antiinmigrante incluso ahora que, por fin, empezamos a negociar con el Consejo la conclusión del pacto migratorio?

El principio de solidaridad flexible pero obligatoria, acordado en el Consejo, no es suficiente. Lo que los países receptores en primera línea necesitan son políticas claras comunes de gestión en la llegada y un reparto solidario en cuanto a la acogida.

Señorías, en tiempos de recomposición del tablero geopolítico mundial necesitamos fortalecer alianzas entre países para avanzar en la democracia, la seguridad, la erradicación de la pobreza y las desigualdades. La Cumbre UE-CELAC ofrece una oportunidad única para inaugurar una nueva era en la cooperación a ambos lados del Atlántico. Porque queremos para América Latina y el Caribe lo mismo que hoy está en juego en Europa y que cada día debemos defender: paz, progreso y democracia.

  Malik Azmani, on behalf of the Renew Group. – Mr President, dear Commissioner Šefčovič and dear Minister Roswell, let me start by offering my congratulations to you, Minister, last week you achieved something we have asked for a very long time.

Finally, we are witnessing progress on one of the most important policy areas for our citizens. Finally, dear colleagues, the European Union is taking steps to tackle one of the challenges of our time.

Some in this House would like us to believe migration is about numbers. Some in this House would like us to believe that migration is only about they and them, as an abstract threat. Some in this House would like us to believe that we cannot solve the issue of migration and that fear should guide us.

The narrative and fear mongering of the extremes in this House and so many houses of parliament in our Member States is strong. People are receptive to fear and extremists have an interest in not solving the problem. They care only about steering the polls.

Renew Europe says ‘no’ to this. Migration is about people, real people like you and me, people fleeing a crisis or persecution for trying to uphold the values that we hold dear, people that are looking for a better life, our way of life.

Our values demand of us that we solve problems, that we are part of the solution, not the problems. Populists talk; Renew Europe acts.

But we are realistic as well. We cannot solve a problem we cannot manage. The current migration situation is out of control, but it is also complex.

That is why I call upon all those of goodwill in this House to help us in managing this crisis. We need to invest more in root causes of migration. We need to be generous to those refugees who seek shelter and deserve our decency. And we need to ensure that the first safe harbour is close to conflict zones so people can return to normality once it occurs.

We need to ensure that Europe is not a human trafficking paradise and that human trade routes are cut off. And yes, third countries that have become transit countries need also to take their responsibility. But so do we, by getting this migration pact over the finish line, by showing the citizens that migration is manageable, that the populists prone on problems and that we can deliver.

Dear colleagues, I know we are all united in our horror at the recent actions of Russia in Ukraine. New sanctions? Yes. Tackling sanctions avoidance? Clearly. Real solidarity? Absolutely, and we urge the Council to be ambitious. There must be consequences for Russian war crimes in Europe.

Dear colleagues, one year from now, I’m confident the political centre will prevail. I know that win Renew Europe will be there to build a pro-European majority in this House, but we have to be realistic. Calling the populists and extremists out for what they are is not enough. Flirting with them or trying to copy their behaviour is even worse. Problems are not solved with words, they are solved with actions.

Let’s get to work and show the people that democracy, compromise, pragmatism and hard work is still the best guarantee for our common future together...

(The President cut off the speaker)

  Terry Reintke, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group. – Mr President, yes, it is true, a lot of people are seeking asylum in the European Union right now. They have names, they have stories, and they have hope to find shelter in the European Union. And yes, the current the current asylum system in the European Union is dysfunctional and needs reform. I think almost everybody agrees on that. And yes, finding political agreement in the context of a mostly toxic debate that is driven by fears rather than facts is very difficult.

But colleagues, right now, the whole story that still far too many politicians are selling to people in Europe about migration and asylum is simply not working. And that story is tougher rules, less refugees, more walls, less refugees, more fences, less refugees. I get that this is an easy sell and that a lot of politicians find it easier not to get into the difficult, complex reality of things. But these lines are simply wrong and there will be no breakthroughs, no improvements of the situation, but only frustration and more hardship at our external borders.

Right now, there are a number of reasons why the number of refugees in the European Union is high. Reason number one: Vladimir Putin, and I’m not even talking about Ukraine because Ukraine was not the first country where Putin’s bombs led to millions of people having to flee. And if we don’t stand up to him, colleagues, it will not be the last.

Reason number two: climate change. The number of climate refugees will increase the more extreme the impact of climate change will become. So instead of falling back into climate denial, let us take the necessary steps of mitigation and adaptation now, because now is the time we have to act.

Reason number three: autocrats that are waging wars against their neighbours and their own citizens, torturing them, imprisoning them, executing them just because they want to live in freedom. Instead of making deals with these autocrats, we should actually support the people in the streets who are fighting for democracy.

The fundamental right to asylum is not only a right but a lesson from our own history. Let us not gamble it away on fake simplistic promises that might work in the next election campaign, but not in the long run. But let us fight and also struggle with the position that the Council has found now for a real, sustainable solution that combines humanity and order. This Parliament, as a beacon of peace and human rights, owes the world at least that.

But let us also talk about crucial decision making that is ongoing on the Green Deal, and especially let us talk about finding compromise with the EPP, who have recently walked out of the democratic negotiation of a crucial piece of legislation, the Nature Restoration Law. This piece of legislation is not only important to meet the Paris goals and to fight against biodiversity loss. Even if you don’t care about any of that, it is crucial to act now in order to keep up our economic competitiveness in the future. Because farmers need healthy soils, they need pollinators, they need clean water. Agriculture needs nature. That is why restoring nature is a precondition for a sustainable economic prosperity and for food security.

And if you think it is a Green co-chair who is saying this, don’t listen to me, listen to big corporations that have recently intervened in the debate. They say with these actions, like the Nature Restoration Law, the European Union would create a level playing field for all businesses in Europe and ensure forward-thinking companies are rewarded for their actions to hold and reverse nature loss. The EU would become a more competitive, resilient and sustainable economy. This law is about nature ... (President interrupted speaker) ... in the future and the EU ... (President interrupted speaker) ... EPP should come back to the negotiation table.

  Nicola Procaccini, a nome del gruppo ECR. – Signor Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, il prossimo Consiglio europeo si celebrerà ad un anno dalle elezioni. Non è ancora il momento dei bilanci, arriverà. Adesso pensiamo al tempo che rimane, alla definizione di una linea politica che affronti e non sfugga le gravi sfide comuni del nostro tempo.

Penso all'immigrazione, un tema sul quale l'Unione europea ha sprecato troppi anni inseguendo un'ideologia chiamata No Borders, impregnata di ambiguità e veterointernazionalismo. Certamente l'ultima riunione dei ministri in Lussemburgo rappresenta un primo passo sulla strada giusta, ma è solo il primo passo e la strada è ancora lunga.

Per noi conservatori europei è fondamentale ribadire il concetto che in Europa si entra solamente in maniera sicura e legale, riconoscendo il diritto di asilo soltanto a chi realmente fugge da guerre e persecuzioni. Lavorare sulla dimensione esterna, cioè sui paesi di origine e transito dei migranti, è cruciale per governare e non subire il fenomeno migratorio, delegandolo ai trafficanti di esseri umani e alle ONG immigrazioniste, come è accaduto finora.

Naturalmente non c'è solo questo tema. Come ECR invitiamo il Consiglio europeo a ricercare un'autonomia strategica aperta, soprattutto in materia di difesa e indipendenza energetica. Per questo accogliamo positivamente lo strumento anticoercizione che dovrebbe consentirci di difendere meglio le aziende europee dalle pratiche commerciali violente e scorrette che talvolta vengono messe in pratica da regimi senza scrupoli come quello cinese.

Infine, dobbiamo essere consapevoli della crisi demografica in atto, aiutando gli Stati europei a promuovere politiche in favore della natalità accompagnate da politiche sociali e sanitarie adeguate. Le risorse sono scarse, è vero, ma quante ne stiamo sprecando inseguendo un ambientalismo radicale che non aiuta l'ambiente, men che meno gli esseri umani che vi abitano dentro.

  Marco Zanni, a nome del gruppo ID. – Signor Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, tre punti fondamentali su cui ci aspettiamo, in questo Consiglio, risposte concrete dalle istituzioni europee.

Il primo riguarda l'accordo che definirei storico sul tema dell'immigrazione raggiunto in Consiglio, che rappresenta però solo un piccolo passo, finalmente nella direzione giusta, di un processo che sarà più lungo e si deve concentrare oggi molto di più sulla dimensione esterna. Meno partenze vuol dire meno arrivi, vuol dire meno morti in mare, vuol dire più sicurezza per i nostri cittadini, vuol dire fare quello che fa uno Stato civile e uno Stato che rispetta lo Stato di diritto.

Il secondo grande tema è quello della transizione industriale e mi fa piacere che, dopo quattro anni di propaganda ideologica, finalmente tanti in quest'Aula si stanno svegliando – è vero, a un anno dalle elezioni – e stanno capendo quanto sia folle l'ideologia green portata avanti dalle istituzioni europee e soprattutto da una maggioranza in questo Parlamento che ha fallito.

I voti di queste settimane sono la dimostrazione che ci può essere una maggioranza in quest'Aula, pragmatica, che porta avanti in maniera pragmatica una transizione verde, che guarda sì al miglioramento dell'ambiente ma anche alle necessità di un'evoluzione economica e industriale contro l'ideologia di chi vuole riportare l'Europa al Medioevo.

L'ultimo punto riguarda l'economia. Ci avviamo verso una stagione di minor crescita o addirittura di stagnazione ed è importante che le politiche dell'Unione europea su questo non siano politiche procicliche – mi riferisco alla revisione del Patto di stabilità e crescita e all'approccio della Banca centrale europea – ma siano politiche di supporto ai cittadini e alle imprese in un momento difficile in cui abbiamo bisogno davvero che vengano iniettati soldi nell'economia per evitare un disastro e per evitare errori del passato che tutti abbiamo riconosciuto.

  Martin Schirdewan, im Namen der Fraktion The Left. – Herr Präsident! Wenn man sich hier den menschenverachtenden Unsinn der Rechten anhören muss, dann kann einem schon ziemlich übel werden. Aber so richtig schlecht wird einem erst dann, wenn man weiß, dass die europäischen Regierungen dieses Verachten gegenüber Menschen in Not auch noch in Politik umsetzen wollen und sich vor der extremen Rechten und ihrem Fremdenhass in den Staub werfen.

Noch übler wird es, wenn sich dann hier einige von den Regierungsparteien − liebe Terry, auch du − hinstellen und ihr dann so tut, als hättet ihr mit diesem Angriff auf das Asylrecht so gar nichts zu tun. Von Solidarität reden, aber Entsolidarisierung vorantreiben − das ist schon ziemliche Heuchelei.

Nach den fürchterlichen Bildern aus Moria hieß es hier in diesem Haus noch vereint: „Nie wieder Moria.“ Doch jetzt sollen an den Außengrenzen der EU ganz viele neue Morias entstehen. Das Gemeinsame Europäische Asylsystem schafft de facto das Recht auf Asyl ab und ist ein Frontalangriff auf Rechtsstaatlichkeit und Menschenrechte: Schnellverfahren unter haftähnlichen Bedingungen, die auch für Kinder gelten sollen − ich kann mich noch genau daran erinnern, wie groß der Aufschrei in der Europäischen Union war, als Donald Trump veranlasst hat, dass Kinder an der Grenze zwischen Mexiko und den USA eingesperrt und in Lager gesperrt werden. Und jetzt? Jetzt plant die Europäische Union genau das Gleiche, auch mit der Zustimmung Deutschlands. Und die Ampelregierung − SPD, FDP und Grüne − betreibt genau dieselbe Politik.

Da hilft es auch nichts, vor dem Problem die Augen zu verschließen und den Kopf in den Sand zu stecken, indem man die Schutzsuchenden zukünftig einfach in andere Staaten wie Tunesien abschiebt und denen dann natürlich auch noch einen Haufen Geld dafür überweist, dass sie die Probleme lösen. Diese Deals sind schmutzig und machen die EU erpressbar. Wer ein wahres Interesse daran hat, den Menschen zu helfen, beendet die falsche Handelspolitik und die anhaltende Zerstörung des Klimas und lässt nicht zu, dass Rüstungskonzerne fürstlich daran verdienen, dass ihre Waffen in Krisen- und Kriegsregionen zum Einsatz kommen.

Wenigstens mit einer Aussage war die zuständige Kommissarin Johansson, und damit auch die Kommission, ja ehrlich. Es geht ihr einzig und allein darum, die Anzahl der Asylsuchenden zu reduzieren. Es geht ihr nicht darum, ein solidarisches Asylsystem zu schaffen, Menschenrechte zu schützen und die Mitgliedstaaten und aufnahmewillige Kommunen zu entlasten. Diese Asylreform ist die reinste Bankrotterklärung europäischer Politik.

  Clara Ponsatí Obiols (NI). – Mr President, if you’re worried about our borders, you need to pay more attention to Morocco and Spain. Last week, two Spanish lawyers from the International Commission of Jurists were prevented by Moroccan authorities to enter Western Sahara to assess the human rights situation in that occupied territory. The Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs had no problem with it. No wonder – this is only one more Moroccan human rights violation with the Spanish seal of approval.

Moroccan spying on Spanish politicians by means of Pegasus has been widely reported, and it seems effective. Since Pedro Sánchez – this beacon of progressive policies, soon to be the President of the Council – took office, we have seen minors mistreated at the borders, forced returns, people assassinated in cold blood for trying to escape to Melilla, and, in a surprising historical reverse, Spain yielding to Morocco’s illegal claims over the Sahara. Is this all the result of blackmail from Morocco, thanks to information obtained through Pegasus? Who knows? What we know is that all of this is inconsistent by a mile with anything pertaining to our European values and laws.

  Tomas Tobé (PPE). – Mr President, Vice-President, Minister, Europe needs migration policy that works, where we have control of the external border, where we can reduce irregular migration, where we can cooperate more with third countries, but also where we cooperate more within the European Union. Only then can we also manage to provide protection to those in need.

We need to move away from the order where only a few Member States have to bear the entire burden. President, we now have a strong majority in this House to move forward with negotiations on the migration pact. And thanks to the leadership of the Swedish presidency, we now also have a strong majority in the Council to move forward. This is historic. It is an historic opportunity, finally, for Europe to create an achieve a migration policy that could work.

And I want to be clear from the European Parliament that for us, the adoption of the whole migration pact is crucial. Every part of this legislation is needed. And I also want to be clear from the EPP Group to all citizens and to all our colleagues in this House, we will be constructive, because there is no time to lose to achieve this. And I also want to be clear to the Council that we will also be constructive with you, because we finally now see an achievement and an historic opportunity and we will not waste it. Europe needs a migration policy that works.

  Elisabetta Gualmini (S&D). – Mr President, dear Minister, dear Commissioner, let us give the state. What is the state? So having unblocked the Migration Pact is a positive fact. But we are only at the beginning and we really hope to improve the text.

First, the obsession with repatriations everywhere. It seems that the most important thing is to send the migrants back, to push them back as if they were parcel post packages, even in countries of transit, when we know very well that it is not easy at all to make reliable deals with those states. So this risks to be a bluff.

Second, the idea of outsourcing, again by giving money migration policies to external states. Tunisia, this time, an authoritarian state with an autocratic president who arrests a journalists, who represses the opposition, who carries out violent persecutions of black Africans. This is simply nonsense.

It is clear that we cannot welcome everyone and for this reason we need the mandatory solidarity among Member States, not voluntary relocation or EUR 20 000 for migrants, which is pretty disgusting. Luckily, the money will go to an outside fund. So let us start the negotiations with responsibility and pragmatism. Let us hope to improve the text.

  Nicola Danti (Renew). – Signor Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, signora Ministra, signor Vicepresidente, il prossimo Consiglio europeo sarà una tappa fondamentale per le sfide che l'Europa ha davanti. Ucraina, clima, Cina, riforma della governance economica sono alcuni dei temi imprescindibili della nostra agenda.

Sul tema migrazioni, dopo l'ultimo Consiglio "Affari interni" vediamo finalmente concretizzarsi un accordo che riconosce la necessità di trovare una convergenza europea, ma che lascia ancora irrisolti troppi nodi. Ancora una volta, il dibattito così importante per l'Italia e per i paesi del Mediterraneo si è scontrato contro il muro dell'opposizione e dei governi politicamente affini a quello italiano. Manca un tassello importante, che è quello della previsione di canali legali di immigrazione sui quali serve un ulteriore sforzo, ricordando che i problemi è meglio gestirli che subirli.

Per questo, nell'aprire i negoziati con il Parlamento, ci aspettiamo dal Consiglio un messaggio più chiaro, così come ci auguriamo che si affrontino in modo più sistematico le relazioni con il continente africano. Le visite di qualche capo di governo possono aiutare a rimandare le emergenze, ma non servono ad affrontare i problemi in modo compiuto con la strategia di cooperazione che sappia guardare al lungo periodo.

  Jordi Solé (Verts/ALE). – Mr President, the Council’s recently agreed position on migration and asylum is worrying to say the least. It shows a bias towards the most narrow-minded attitudes regarding asylum and migration. The Council’s general approach would significantly lower protection standards for people arriving at EU borders. It would normalise the detention of migrants in close facilities at external borders for months, including families with children.

The much-needed solidarity between Member States translates now into the possibility of paying for not relocating – that is, for not assuming responsibility. The cost of looking away is set at EUR 20 000 – money that can also go to third countries so that they can, and I mean it ironically, do us the favour of stopping migrants and asylum seekers on their own.

Fortress Europe sees its foundations reinforced, while European solidarity faces a resounding failure. In the coming weeks and months, we will need to defend the agreements of this Parliament. They still fall short, but they are for sure closer to our fundamental values than those coming from the Council.

  Charlie Weimers (ECR). – Herr talman! Fru minister, kollegor! Rådet kom förra veckan överens om en kompromiss om migrationspakten, en kompromiss som hängde på en väldigt, väldigt skör tråd. Rådet pläderar bland annat för snabbavvisningar av migranter som kommer från länder utan krigstillstånd, utan hot mot deras liv, att migranter utan asylskäl ska kunna deporteras till säkra transitländer och att migrantkvoter dikterade av Bryssel är någonting som man helst inte vill se.

När det gäller mitt eget land, Sverige, har vi nyligen haft en masskjutning som till och med vänsterliberala kulturskribenter förknippar med migrationen. Då kan inte Europaparlamentet sitta i elfenbenstornet och tala om ”rädslans narrativ” – när tonåringar i Sverige undrar: ”Är det min tur nästa gång? Ska du låsa in mig hemma nu, pappa?” Det är väldigt lätt att göra det, som nyliberaler, ni gröna. Går ni in med den attityden i förhandlingarna med rådet kan jag lova er: Det kommer inte att bli någon migrationspakt!

  Jean-Paul Garraud (ID). – Monsieur le Président, chers collègues, dans le concert eurobéat que j’entends ici, ma voix sera totalement dissonante. L’accord trouvé par le Conseil de l’Union européenne est loin de faire l’unanimité, puisque deux pays résistent à l’idéologie immigrationniste de Bruxelles et quatre autres se sont abstenus. Il fallait être courageux pour s’opposer à cette idéologie, car les sanctions peuvent être lourdes de conséquences, surtout au niveau financier. Il fallait l’être encore davantage pour proposer de mettre en place une coalition d’opposition contre ce pacte. Nous saluons et soutenons avec force cette initiative polonaise.

Pendant ce temps, la France approuvait des deux mains cet accord, le jour même de la terrible attaque d’Annecy, où un Syrien qui n’avait rien à faire en France poignardait plusieurs très jeunes enfants. L’horreur absolue. Le ministre français Darmanin, pourtant chargé de protéger les Français, pousse à la répartition des migrants partout sur le territoire français. En la matière, l’Union européenne ainsi que M. Macron et son gouvernement veulent imposer une politique migratoire dont nos peuples ne veulent pas et ils veulent le faire avant les échéances électorales de 2024. Nous ferons tout pour nous opposer à ce funeste projet et, dès que nous serons au pouvoir, nous déclencherons un référendum sur l’immigration. D’abord et avant tout, la parole au peuple.

  Sira Rego (The Left). – Señor presidente, señor comisario, por más que lo pienso, no entiendo qué le aporta a la Comisión Europea la foto con Meloni en Túnez. Créanme, sería un error pensar que recortar derechos a las personas migrantes no va con nosotros porque, en el momento en el que se cuestionan los derechos humanos de un solo colectivo, estamos todos y todas en riesgo. Es decir, se empieza con los derechos de las personas migrantes, se sigue con las mujeres, las personas LGBTI y se continúa con la libertad sindical, la de prensa o el control de la justicia. Les suena, ¿no?

Por otra parte, parece que, además de comprarles la idea de que los derechos humanos no son universales e indivisibles, ustedes han decidido entregarle a esta señora el control absoluto de la política migratoria europea. Claro que, teniéndola a ella de jefa, luego les sería mucho más sencillo pactar con Polonia y con Hungría.

El problema es que, con tanto abrazo a la extrema derecha, están normalizando el racismo, el machismo, el negacionismo climático y toda clase de delitos de odio.

  Jérôme Rivière (NI). – Monsieur le Président, les débats choisis par la majorité avant la réunion du Conseil entonnent la même lancinante rengaine. Si, doucement, face à la colère grandissante des peuples, vous condescendez à parler d’immigration, cela reste toujours l’occasion de mieux la justifier et d’imaginer des méthodes de répartition contraignantes et brutales des migrants partout sur notre territoire, qui pourtant refuse cette submersion.

Autre obsession: le refus de reconnaître aux peuples européens le choix des politiques qu’ils souhaitent voir appliquer dans leurs pays, dès qu’ils refusent la disparition de leur nation. Hongrie et Pologne sont sans cesse dans vos pensées maniaques. Non, l’état de droit n’est pas plus menacé en Pologne qu’en Hongrie. Balayez devant nos propres institutions: corrompues, elles sont loin d’être exemplaires.

Enfin, vos ingérences dans les affaires des États membres et vos désirs de normes toujours plus contraignantes, au nom d’une idéologie écologiste dogmatique, mettent en péril des pans entiers de l’activité économique et agricole de pays membres. Heureusement, à l’image de ce que Silvio Berlusconi avait entamé en Italie, le refus de vos idéologies par les peuples prépare pour l’année prochaine le grand retour des droites conservatrices en Europe.

  Dolors Montserrat (PPE). – Señor presidente, señor comisario, tenemos grandes retos y desafíos europeos por delante, como la unidad por la libertad en Ucrania, la consecución de una política económica de crecimiento con buena ejecución de los fondos NextGenerationEU y la gestión de la la crisis migratoria.

Pero, si queremos trabajar por una Europa que defienda también la igualdad, los sectores económicos y el empleo, el fortalecimiento institucional y la lucha contra la corrupción, debemos trabajar también con nuestros Estados miembros. Porque, mientras aquí hablamos de proteger a las mujeres, en España se han rebajado más de 1 100 penas a agresores sexuales por una ley del Gobierno socialista. Mientras nuestros agricultores hacen malabares para sobrevivir económicamente, aquí la izquierda criminaliza su trabajo y perjudica a sus productos. Mientras nuestras familias sufren la inflación y la subida de la cesta de la compra, no llegan los fondos NextGenerationEU a la economía real. Mientras aquí pedimos no relajar la lucha contra la corrupción, en España se rebaja la pena del delito que la persigue porque los socios del Gobierno lo han pedido. Mientras aquí se defiende que se recuerde la memoria de las víctimas del terrorismo, en España el Gobierno pacta con los que han llevado en sus listas a etarras condenados. Y, mientras aquí se pide que la Presidencia rotatoria sea de todo el país, de toda España, el presidente del Gobierno se niega a comunicarle al líder de la oposición las principales líneas de trabajo.

Esta manera de hacer política debe cambiar. Hay que dar paso a la responsabilidad, al sentido de Estado y a defender siempre a Europa en todos los rincones de Europa y, por tanto, también en España.

  Marek Belka (S&D). – Mr President, Commissioner, colleagues, most of you have been speaking about the Migration Pact. No surprise. However, in order for deep European reforms to be implemented, our citizens need to have confidence in the European project. And the biggest problem for them now is probably the economy. I call on the council to make progress on the reform of the Stability and Growth Pact. We need to find the right balance between flexibility for the southern countries and more assurance for the so-called frugals. We need more ideas how to cooperate with the ECB in order not to fall into stagflation or austerity policy. At the same time, I believe that one of the worst things that might happen to the EU is divergence in gross inflation and indebtedness. It might lead to a deepening of nationalist and Eurosceptic tendencies, bringing us a collapse of the European project as we know it. Hence, if the economy brought EU countries together in the beginning, it would be irresponsible for us and the Council to ignore the topic in the short and long term.

  Hilde Vautmans (Renew). – Voorzitter, met een jaar te gaan tot de Europese verkiezingen zegt twee derde van de Europeanen naar de stembus te zullen gaan. Dat is meer dan vijf jaar geleden.

We hebben vastgesteld dat de EU als relevant wordt gezien, maar dat burgers in veel lidstaten evenwel voornemens zijn anti-EU te stemmen. Er moeten op deze top daarom echte doorbraken worden gemaakt om de burgers ervan te overtuigen dat de EU ertoe doet. Zo verwacht ik een streng elfde sanctiepakket tegen het agressieve Rusland, dat niet alleen alle namen, maar tevens diamanten omvat.

Voorts moeten we een nieuwe strategie vaststellen ten aanzien van het dominante China. We moeten een defensie-unie en een Europees leger tot stand brengen.

Ten slotte moeten we het migratiepact afronden. Mensen verwachten immers antwoorden. Laten we daarbij ook kinderen beschermen die op de vlucht zijn, die niet uitdrukkelijk in het migratiepact worden genoemd.

  Tineke Strik (Verts/ALE). – Mr President, Council, Commissioner, preventing new Morias and push backs and ensuring solidarity, that is how the Commission presented the pact proposals. But look now at the Council agreement. No shared responsibility, but the following message to the border countries: ‘Detain asylum seekers at your borders, after a poor procedure, send them to any country willing to take them for a nice amount of money. And you may call that country a safe third country’. This is why Italy said yes. And why von der Leyen promised EUR 1 billion to Tunisia, a country where people are fleeing violence and persecution? Selling responsibility is the new norm inside and outside the EU. And after the sale, why care for people’s right to protection, dignity and life? Because, hey, we sold that, didn’t we? I urge this House to remind the Council that human rights cannot be paid off. And to firmly reject this toxic deal and to finally take common responsibility.

  Patryk Jaki (ECR). – Panie Przewodniczący! Otóż kwestionuję cały ten pakt migracyjny. We wszystkich oficjalnych rezolucjach, oświadczeniach piszecie, że przyjmowanie migrantów jest świetne, że ta polityka wzbogaca. Tak? To dlaczego w takim razie chcecie się ich teraz pozbyć, tych wspaniałych ludzi, i wcisnąć ich krajom, które tego wcale nie chcą?

Odpowiedź jest prosta: ponieważ kłamiecie w tej sprawie od rana do wieczora. Wiecie, że to wcale nie jest nic wspaniałego? Ale więcej gwałtów, przestępstw, wydatków na bezpieczeństwo, większe bezrobocie.

Mówicie o prawach człowieka – ponadto słyszymy. A chcecie siłą wywozić ludzi, np. z Niemiec, i przewozić ich do Polski, gdzie oni wcale nie chcą być. I my mamy budować dla nich jakieś więzienia, żeby oni z powrotem nie uciekli do Niemiec. I to są te prawa człowieka – trzymanie ludzi siłą wbrew ich woli?

Dodatkowo, jak Polska nie przyjmie migranta, każecie płacić około 100 tysięcy złotych na każdego imigranta z Afryki, a na prawdziwych uchodźców z Ukrainy zapłaciliście Polsce około 100 euro. To jakim cudem wyceniliście Ukraińców, prawdziwych uchodźców wojennych, mniej od migrantów z Afryki? Przecież co to jest jak nie rasizm? Apeluję o opamiętanie.

IN THE CHAIR: MARC ANGEL
Vice-President

  Gunnar Beck (ID). – Herr Präsident! Der Ministerrat hat sich auf einen neuen EU-Migrationspakt geeinigt. Mit welchem Ergebnis? Europa braucht strenge Obergrenzen und externe Aufnahmezentren.

Doch der Rat beschließt Mindestquoten für alle Mitgliedstaaten und Highspeed-Verteilungszentren in der EU. Wir brauchen klare, verschärfte Regeln. Doch der Pakt beschleunigt Verfahren und schafft viele Ausnahmen, die jede Prüfung unmöglich machen.

Wir brauchen Aufnahmestopps für illegale Migranten. Stattdessen wird der Begriff „illegale Migration“ abgeschafft. Dieser Pakt erleichtert weder Abschiebungen noch Remigration, sondern lädt die gesamte Welt nach Europa ein. Denn aufgenommen wird künftig jeder Klimaflüchtling, dem das Wetter daheim nicht gefällt. Sie bringen uns Dutzende Millionen Kostgänger. Nach drei nordeuropäischen Studien kostet uns jeder davon lebenslang 700 000 Euro.

Ihre Migrationspläne sind genauso fantastisch wie Ihre Klimarettung. Denn Ihnen fehlt jeder Bezug zur Wirklichkeit und dafür, was sie bewirken. Sie holen die Dritte Welt. Wir werden zur Dritten Welt.

  Kinga Gál (NI). – Elnök Úr! Az Európai Tanács már világosan megfogalmazta két ízben, hogy a migrációt érintő kérdésekben csak konszenzussal lehet dönteni. Ehhez képest a belügyminiszterek múlt heti ülésén minősített többséggel, puccsszerűen nyomták át a migrációs csomagot. Ennek a súlyos kérdésnek feltétlenül szerepelnie kell a következő tanács napirendjén. Az elfogadott csomag tartalmazza a kötelező kvóta szerinti elosztást, amit újra meghívóként értelmeznek majd illegális bevándorlók milliói.

Illegális migránsokat befogadni nem akaró tagállamokra pedig pénzbüntetést rónának ki a szolidaritás jegyében. Ez a csomag így nem jelent megoldást az illegális migráció megállítására, vagy a jogtalanul érkezettek visszafordítására. Arra lenne végre szükség, hogy az Unió kimondja: az illegális migrációt meg kell állítani, meg kell erősíteni és anyagilag támogatni a külső határok védelmét. Az Unió megint nem tanul saját hibáiból. Mindeközben minden jel arra utal, hogy az orosz agresszió miatt kirobbant háború eszkalálódik. A további pusztítás elkerülése, emberéletek megmentése végett fegyverszünetre lenne szükség, hogy béketárgyalások kezdődhessenek, hogy elvezessenek a tartós békéhez.

  Luděk Niedermayer (PPE). – Mr President, dear colleagues, first on migration: I highly value the ability of the ministers to find the agreement on solidarity that is respecting the will of as many Member States as possible. I guess this is a good result, but obviously it is not the end. We still have to work on this issue. We have to work on the return policy. We have to work on making sure that people that can stay quickly get the right to stay. But I hope that the spirit of cooperation and solidarity will stay.

Secondly, we must keep momentum on our response to the Russian aggression in Ukraine, especially, I guess, on three points. The first is to keep clear evidence of the crimes and the damages caused by Russia. The second, as soon as possible, is to distribute at least part of the seized funds to Ukraine to cover at least some costs of the Russian aggression. And last but not least, we must keep focusing on the third countries that may be overcoming the sanctions and may be providing Russia with military support.

Last, not least, and it was already mentioned here, we should focus more on competitiveness. I guess the net-zero industry is a good step, but I wonder if we should not take a more comprehensive approach of at looking how far we are, where we are, to make sure that Europe and its economies will stay competitive or will enhance its competition on the global economy.

  Pedro Marques (S&D). – Senhor Presidente, Senhora Ministra, Senhor Vice-Presidente, o Conselho debaterá, como nos foi dito, a Política de Migrações. Precisamos de avanços rápidos nesta Política de Migrações.

Como sempre tem dito a Comissária Ylva Johansson, as migrações são algo de normal na história da Europa, têm é de ser geridas. E podemos estar a um passo de acabar com um estigma de 20 anos que tem perpassado as políticas europeias.

O continente europeu está envelhecido, os migrantes serão parte essencial do nosso processo de desenvolvimento. Precisamos de migrações reguladas, mas também de uma política de refugiados solidária, humana e, Senhores do Partido Popular Europeu, o que não está no Pacto de Migrações é o financiamento europeu de vedações ou muros, o que é certamente uma grande desilusão para a direita e para a extrema-direita europeia.

Mas, Senhor Vice-Presidente Šefčovič, sobre os passos recentes, existe uma preocupação: a externalização da política migratória para um autocrata na Tunísia é muito preocupante.

O Conselho debaterá, mas a Comissão não escapará ao escrutínio deste Parlamento.

Que regras e condicionalidades para garantir direitos humanos na Política de Migrações? Isso é algo que este Parlamento perguntará e quererá esclarecimentos da Comissão.

  Fabienne Keller (Renew). – Monsieur le Président, Monsieur le Commissaire, cher Maroš Šefčovič, Madame la Ministre, chère Jessica Roswall, la semaine dernière, les États ont fait preuve d’une unité forte en adoptant leur position sur les textes phares du pacte européen sur la migration et l’asile. C’est une étape décisive, qui n’aurait pu voir le jour sans la détermination des présidences française, tchèque et suédoise. Merci à eux.

Ainsi, nous défendons une Europe qui maîtrise ses frontières extérieures, avec notamment Frontex; une Europe solidaire vis-à-vis des pays sous pression migratoire; une Europe efficace, qui assure un traitement rapide des demandes d’asile; et une Europe des valeurs, qui respecte pleinement les personnes et le droit à la protection internationale.

Nos citoyens attendent que l’Union européenne et les États répondent aux défis migratoires collectifs en Européens. Mesdames et Messieurs les Chefs d’État, au Parlement européen, nous sommes déterminés à faire aboutir le Pacte européen sur la migration et l’asile début 2024, avant les élections européennes. Nous comptons sur vous pour faire de même, ensemble.

  Gerolf Annemans (ID). – Voorzitter, we spreken over de aankomende bijeenkomst van de Europese Raad. Ik citeer uit uw titel: “in het licht van de vooruitgang die onlangs is geboekt met betrekking tot de sluiting van het migratiepact”. Het gebruik van het begrip “vooruitgang” is, naar mijn oordeel en naar het oordeel van mijn partij, het Vlaams Belang, een hogere vorm van cynisme te noemen.

Wellicht denkt u in uw droomwereld, deze bubbel van groen-linkse zelfgenoegzaamheid, vooruitgang te boeken in de richting van uw einddoel: een hemel van een migratiepact dat de grenzen onbeperkt openhoudt voor de bevolkingsaanwas uit de hele wereld, terwijl de legale en illegale instroom zonder onderscheid over het hele continent wordt uitgesmeerd en lidstaten die dit spel niet meespelen, worden bestraft. U beseft echter niet dat u niet meer spreekt namens een steeds groter wordende groep mensen uit alle lidstaten die dit spel zo grondig beu is dat honderdduizenden van hen zich van het Europees Parlement afkeren, omdat ze vinden dat u ons continent in sneltempo cultureel laat wegzakken onder migratie. Dit is in hun ogen geen vooruitgang, maar een achteruitgang zonder weerga in onze geschiedenis.

Wij spreken namens deze grote groep en zullen de kiezers vragen hierover een oordeel te vellen.

  Sabrina Pignedoli (NI). – Signor Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, dopo le minacce sull'uso delle armi nucleari, dopo decine di migliaia di morti e feriti, dopo le stragi e i saccheggi subiti dalla popolazione ucraina, ieri il Wall Street Journal ha rivelato che gli Stati Uniti, come già la Gran Bretagna, sono pronti a fornire all'Ucraina armi all'uranio impoverito e Putin ha risposto che allora le useranno anche loro.

Nel 2008 quest'Aula ha approvato una risoluzione che chiedeva il divieto globale dell'uso di queste armi pericolosissime per la salute e l'ambiente. Mi chiedo cosa sia cambiato da allora. Mi chiedo perché tutte quelle forze politiche che fino a pochi anni fa facevano battaglie condivisibili, oggi le rinnegano, anzi alimentano una guerra dannosa per tutta l'Europa.

Presidente, non è mai troppo tardi per cambiare la direzione di questo conflitto. Non arrendiamoci a chi getta benzina sull'odio fra i popoli, magari perché è al servizio di qualche lobby di armi. L'Unione europea ha la pace nel suo DNA. Il prossimo Consiglio europeo lanci dunque un messaggio di pace e di speranza e imponga il dialogo ai due contendenti.

  Karlo Ressler (PPE). – Poštovani predsjedavajući, kolegice i kolege, kontinuirani porast ilegalnih prelazaka, nepojmljivi brojevi imigranata i krijumčara i sve snažniji migracijski pritisak na Mediteran, na prostor gdje se stvarala, gdje je nastajala zapadna civilizacija, još jednom zvoni na uzbunu, još jednom ukazuje na alarmantnost situacije na našim zajedničkim vanjskim granicama. Europa još uvijek nema kontrolu.

Europa još uvijek nema mehanizme i nema načine za zaustaviti stvaranje novih, i novih, migracijskih valova. Sustav azila s masovnim zloupotrebama je potpuno disfunkcionalan, a države bliže granici, kao što su Italija, Grčka, Hrvatska, podnose neproporcionalni dio tereta. Ono što je, međutim, jasno, pa i iz ove rasprave, je da je politika stihijskih migracija propala. Dosadašnji pristup jednostavno ne može biti održivi način upravljanja migracijama i to danas razumije, to danas prihvaća većina država članica, jer shvaćaju da je potrebno pronaći dogovor i između država članica, ali pronaći dogovor i ovdje u Europskom parlamentu.

Zato je ohrabrujući korak prošlotjedni dogovor ministara unutarnjih poslova, koji treba pozdraviti, ključni zakonski prijedlozi koji će biti presudni jer je ključno, u konačnici, pronaći taj balans između odgovornosti i solidarnosti. Mislim da to s ovim prijedlogom možemo napraviti i nadam se da će se to dogoditi prije izbora.

  Gabriele Bischoff (S&D). – Herr Präsident, sehr geehrter Vizepräsident der Kommission Šefčovič und auch Frau Roswall! Ich möchte mich noch mal bei Ihnen bedanken für Ihre Präsenz hier. Wir wissen das zu schätzen im Hause. Das ist nicht immer so.

Wenn ich hier den Reden aber zuhöre, die ich in diesem Haus hören muss, dann merkt man doch, dass die rechte Seite hier im Haus seit Jahren den Diskurs verseucht, Lügen verbreitet, Ressentiments, Angst schürt und Abschottung propagiert. Und dann wundert man sich, wenn sich das dann auch ein Stück im Ratsmandat widerspiegelt und sich auf der anderen Seite dann trotzdem Polen und Ungarn die Hände reinwaschen, weil sie dem gar nicht zugestimmt haben.

Ich möchte noch einmal unterstreichen, dass dieses Haus einen breiten Konsens hat, dass wir ein ausgewogenes Migrationspaket unterstützen wollen. Aber ich möchte noch mal unterstreichen: Menschenwürde und Völkerrecht muss Rechnung getragen werden. Das ist etwas, was uns die Bürgerinnen und Bürger der Zukunftskonferenz noch einmal ins Stammbuch geschrieben haben.

Deshalb mein Appell an den Rat, auch hier tatsächlich in die Verhandlungen zu gehen, mit dem Parlament auf dieser Basis einen guten, einen viel besseren Kompromiss zu finden.

(Die Rednerin ist damit einverstanden, eine Frage nach dem Verfahren der „blauen Karte“ zu beantworten.)

  Bogdan Rzońca (ECR), pytanie zadane przez podniesienie niebieskiej kartki. – Wymieniła Pani Polskę jako ten kraj, który niby umywa ręce od uchodźców. Chciałbym zapytać, czy ma Pani świadomość, że w czasie wojny w Ukrainie do Polski napłynęło 12 i pół miliona uchodźców z Ukrainy - matek i dzieci? Czy Pani o tym wie? I bezczelnie Pani zarzuca Polsce odrzucenie problematyki uchodźców. Tak nie jest. Polska i wszyscy Polacy, i nie tylko Polacy, pięknie pomagają matkom i dzieciom z Ukrainy. A Pani nas oskarża o to, że nie chcemy uczestniczyć w polityce migracyjnej. Poprzednio jeszcze w Polsce znaleźli się uchodźcy z Czeczeni - 100 tysięcy Czeczenów. Pani niewiedza prezentowana tutaj w Parlamencie Europejskim po prostu szkodzi Parlamentowi Europejskiemu. Proszę przyjąć do wiadomości, że Polska uczestniczy w problematyce migracyjnej, bo przez Polskę przeszło 12 i pół miliona matek i dzieci z Ukrainy.

  Gabriele Bischoff (S&D), Antwort auf eine Frage nach dem Verfahren der „blauen Karte“. – Menschenwürde ist unteilbar. Wir haben keine Erste-Klasse-Flüchtlinge oder Zweite-Klasse-Flüchtlinge. Das ist der entscheidende Wert Europas.

Das zweite ist: Polen und Ungarn haben im Rat diesem Kompromiss, den der Rat nach acht Jahren Blockade gefunden hat, nicht zugestimmt. Das sind einfach die Fakten und nichts weiter.

  Jan-Christoph Oetjen (Renew). – Herr Präsident, Frau Ministerin, Herr Kommissar! Es ist gut, dass sich die Mitgliedstaaten jetzt geeinigt haben. Das ist ein Zeichen der Handlungsfähigkeit in einer Frage, in der Europa viel zu lange nicht handlungsfähig gewesen ist. Jetzt können wir endlich anfangen mit den Verhandlungen zwischen Rat und Parlament.

Als Freie Demokraten unterstützen wir den Paradigmenwechsel hin zu mehr Ordnung in der Migration und die Einführung von Grenzverfahren, natürlich mit hohen humanitären und rechtsstaatlichen Standards. Neben der Reduzierung der irregulären Migration müssen wir gleichzeitig die Wege der Migration in den Arbeitsmarkt erweitern. Denn wir brauchen Zuwanderung in unseren Arbeitsmarkt, wenn wir den Wohlstand in Europa erhalten wollen. Wir Liberale schlagen dafür einen europäischen Talentpool vor.

Es ist jetzt aber wichtig, dass die Mitgliedstaaten auch eine Position zum Krisenmechanismus finden. Die Regelungen für normale Zeiten sind wichtig, aber entscheidend ist, dass wir als Europäer auch eine Antwort haben für Krisenzeiten. Da müssen die Mitgliedstaaten jetzt nachliefern.

  Angelika Winzig (PPE). – Herr Präsident! Viele Jahre hat es gedauert, bis endlich am 8. Juni eine Ratseinigung in der Asyl- und Migrationsfrage geschafft wurde.

Für meinen Mitgliedstaat waren die letzten neun Jahre schwierige Zeiten. Denn Österreich gehörte immer zu jenen Ländern, die am meisten von den Flüchtlingsströmen betroffen waren. Und ehrlich gesagt, die europäische Solidarität und Unterstützung hielt sich dabei immer in Grenzen. Asylpolitik bedarf einer europäischen Lösung, und daher ist es wichtig, dass in der EU ein gemeinsames Asylverfahren für alle Mitgliedstaaten eingeführt wird.

Ja, ich bin auch kein Quotenfan. Aber wenn nur wenige Mitgliedstaaten für die Mehrheit der Asylanträge zuständig sind, wie das bisher in Österreich der Fall war, dann wird das auch nicht funktionieren. Eine humanitäre und sichere europäische Migrationspolitik bedarf eines funktionierenden Außengrenzschutzes und schneller Asylverfahren an den Außengrenzen, damit Schleppern endlich die Geschäftsgrundlage entzogen wird und Asylmissbrauch und illegale Migration verhindert wird.

Unglaublich viele Flüchtlinge befinden sich zurzeit auf den Land- und Seerouten bzw. warten in Afrika auf die Ausreise nach Europa. Daher ist es wichtig, dass der Ratseinigung jetzt auch rasch Taten folgen.

  Alex Agius Saliba (S&D). – Sur President, ilna snin nappellaw għal mekkaniżmu ġust ta’ solidarjetà: solidarjetà ma’ dawk l-aktar fil-bżonn, solidarjetà maċ-ċittadini tagħna u solidarjetà bejn l-Istati Membri.

Wara snin ta’ negozjati fil-Kunsill, huwa diżappuntanti illi l-ftehim li ntlaħaq il-ġimgħa li għaddiet ma jilħaqx bilanċ tajjeb bejn ir-responsabbiltajiet u s-solidarjetà. Il-ftehim milħuq fil-Kunsill, ser ikun diffiċli ħafna li jiffunzjona bil-volum attwali ta’ flussi migratorji lejn l-Unjoni Ewropea. L-impenji konkreti dwar il-qsim tar-responsabbiltà u s-solidarjetà għadhom lura meta mqabbla mal-ambizzjonijiet ta’ dan il-Parlament.

Filwaqt li nilqa’ l-mekkaniżmu ta’ solidarjetà obbligatorju, nemmen bis-sħiħ li għadha nieqsa mil-livell ta’ impenn meħtieġ biex niżguraw li l-bżonnijiet tal-aktar pajjiżi esposti jiġu sodisfatti, speċjalment pajjiżi bħal Malta li huwa tant vulnerabbli minħabba d-daqs u l-partikolaritajiet tiegħu.

Jeħtieġ li naraw aktar rieda mill-Istati Membri kollha biex nuru solidarjetà, wara kollox dan huwa prinċipju fundamentali stabbilit mit-Trattat tal-istess Unjoni Ewropea.

Catch-the-eye procedure

  Ελισσάβετ Βόζεμπεργκ-Βρυωνίδη (PPE). – Kύριε Πρόεδρε, ενόψει του Συμβουλίου είναι αναγκαίο πλέον να αποφασίσουμε, μεταξύ άλλων, ότι τα κράτη πρώτης υποδοχής αξιώνουν δικαίως αλληλεγγύη στην πράξη, που σε περιόδους κρίσης μπορεί να εκφράζεται με όρους υποχρεωτικής μετεγκατάστασης. Ότι χώρες όπως η Ελλάδα, που φυλάσσουν αποτελεσματικά τα σύνορα της Ευρώπης, πρέπει να αντιμετωπίζονται δίκαια, ότι πρέπει να συμπράττουν όλοι με κάθε τρόπο στους τρόπους φύλαξης και ότι η Τουρκία πρέπει να πιεστεί, ως ασφαλής χώρα και στρατηγικός εταίρος, να τηρεί τους όρους της κοινής δήλωσης του 2016 για τον έλεγχο των διακινητών.

Αγαπητοί συνάδελφοι, η κυβέρνηση της χώρας μου, της Ελλάδος, τα τελευταία χρόνια έχει προχωρήσει σε νομοθετικές πρωτοβουλίες και πολιτικές πρακτικές που αντιμετωπίζουν αποτελεσματικά τα θέματα ασύλου και μετανάστευσης, με τον οφειλόμενο σεβασμό στα ανθρώπινα δικαιώματα. Όμως αναφερόμαστε σε κοινό ευρωπαϊκό θέμα που αξιώνει ανάληψη ευθύνης από όλα τα κράτη μέλη της Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης. Οι ευρωπαϊκές μας αρχές δεν επιδέχονται εξαιρέσεις.

  Juan Fernando López Aguilar (S&D). – Señor presidente, Consejo, Comisión, estamos en el año 2023 y pronto hará 14 años que entró en vigor el Tratado de Lisboa, que ordenó que pusiéramos en pie no solamente una política común de migración y asilo, sino una legislación común. Y este Parlamento ha trabajado muy duro para cumplir esa promesa con cinco Reglamentos vinculantes para los Estados miembros sobre la base, por fin, de los principios de responsabilidad compartida y solidaridad vinculante.

El último Consejo de Ministros de Justicia e Interior en Luxemburgo supuso un paso adelante en la dirección correcta —un principio de solidaridad vinculante—, bajo la Presidencia sueca y con el liderazgo de España, que asume la Presidencia del 1 de julio. A pesar de las insidias, los ataques incesantes, injustos y, desde luego, poco patrióticos del Partido Popular español, que no pierde ni una ocasión ni un turno de palabra para hablar mal de su país, la Presidencia española puede producir resultados. Y no producirlo en esta legislatura sería un gran fracaso. Pero, para conseguir el éxito, es necesario que el sistema sea europeo en sus valores, en su legislación y en la escala de sus respuestas.

  Beata Kempa (ECR). – Panie Przewodniczący! Szanowni Państwo! W polityce największym grzechem jest naiwność. Jeżeli jest tak, że od lat jednak nie potraficie Państwo zatrzymać nielegalnych uchodźców, nie potraficie zaradzić nielegalnym przerzutom, zamiast twardo walczyć z przemytem, walczycie niestety z państwami członkowskimi.

Dlaczego nie konfiskuje się łodzi przemytników, kiedy dokują w portach? Atakujecie kraje członkowskie, które nie podzielają szalonej wizji transformacji społeczeństw. Mówicie o liczbach przymusowych relokacji, ukrywając przepisy o łączeniu rodzin, które to przepisy w kilka lat potrafią wysadzić każdy zdrowy naród nadprogramową imigracją.

Moja ojczyzna, Polska, przyjęła ponad półtora miliona uchodźców, 12 milionów przetoczyło się przez nasze granice. A wy zamiast pomóc, chcecie karać nas dwudziestoma tysiącami euro za nieprzyjęcie migrantów ekonomicznych z Afryki.

Dlatego chcę dzisiaj powiedzieć jasno i wyraźnie, że ta polityka po prostu cieszy przemytników. Jeśli będziecie nas karać, oni będą właśnie przysyłać tych przemytników do Europy.

  Özlem Demirel (The Left). – Herr Präsident! Die von den Innenministern gefundene Lösung für das gemeinsame Asylsystem der EU ist keine Lösung, und es verschärft im Kern das Elend. Das bereits jetzt bestehende Falsche wird verstetigt, und mit Solidarität hat dieses System nichts zu tun.

Kolleginnen, weltweit müssen immer mehr Menschen fliehen und ihre Heimat verlassen. Sie müssen es wegen bewaffneter Konflikte, die auch mit Waffen made in EU geführt werden. Sie müssen es, weil ihre Lebensgrundlagen zerstört werden, auch von großen Konzernen aus der EU, die ihre Länder ausbeuten, ihre Ressourcen plündern und ihre Märkte mit ihrem Müll vollschwemmen. Sie müssen es, weil ihre Landwirtschaft kaputt ist, weil sie ihre Fischerei nicht mehr betreiben können, weil es auch EU-Quoten gibt, die eben ihre Meere leerfischen.

Die EU ist in der Verantwortung dafür, diesen Menschen natürlich auch eine Zukunftsperspektive zu geben. Ja, Kolleginnen, Flucht ist keine Lösung, aber für viele Menschen scheint es akut die einzige Aussicht zu sein. Deshalb sagen wir ganz klar: Wir verteidigen das Recht auf Asyl, aber wir stellen auch die Ordnung, die Sie geschaffen haben, mit der globalen Ungerechtigkeit infrage. Wir stellen uns der rechten Hetze …

(Der Präsident unterbricht die Rednerin.)

  Domènec Ruiz Devesa (S&D). – Señor presidente Marc Angel, aprovecho la ocasión de este debate para dirigirme de nuevo a la ministra Roswall de la Presidencia sueca porque, hace un año, el Consejo Europeo de finales de junio cometió un error que igual ustedes pueden corregir.

Cuando se dio la bienvenida a Ucrania y se la declaró candidata, el presidente Macron se olvidó de su compromiso de avanzar en la profundización política de Europa y propuso la Comunidad Política Europea, y todo el mundo se despistó. Esa era la ocasión, a la vez que se daba esa señal hacia la ampliación, de dar una señal hacia la profundización, es decir, hacia la reforma de los Tratados. Porque evidentemente nadie se puede creer que vamos a ir a un Consejo con 30, 33 o 35 miembros y seguir como hasta ahora, con el derecho de veto y otras cosas que no tienen sentido.

Así que, por favor, ministra Roswall, aproveche la oportunidad de este Consejo Europeo para decir algo muy simple: que la ampliación y la profundización tienen que ir de la mano.

  Anna Zalewska (ECR). – Panie Przewodniczący! Panie Komisarzu! Jako podsumowanie trzy nieprawdy i sprostowania do tych nieprawd.

Po pierwsze, nieprawdą jest, że jest porozumienie w sprawie paktu migracyjnego, z prostego powodu, że gdyby było, nie trzeba by było uciekać się do oszustwa traktatowego, dlatego że takie decyzje mają zapadać nie na Radzie Unii Europejskiej, ale w Radzie Europejskiej.

Druga nieprawda - oszukujecie Europejczyków, mówiąc, że mówimy o migracji i uchodźcach. Nie, my mówimy o nielegalnej imigracji, z szacunkiem odnosząc się do migrantów zarobkowych, z szacunkiem przyjmując uchodźców wojennych.

Po trzecie, nieprawdą jest, że chcecie pomagać. Komisja Europejska, Unia Europejska, socjaliści przede wszystkim, chcą zalegalizować nielegalny handel ludźmi i nielegalną imigrację.

  Margarida Marques (S&D). – Senhor Presidente, fomos surpreendidos com a ida da presidente da Comissão Europeia à Tunísia propor um acordo em cinco pilares, entre eles o Pilar Migrações.

A Tunísia é um parceiro precioso para a União Europeia? Sim. A União Europeia tem apoiado o percurso democrático desde 2011? Sim. Combater o tráfico de seres humanos na região? Sim. Reforçar as relações com a Tunísia, investindo na estabilidade e prosperidade? Sim, mas é pouco.

Mas propor à Tunísia, hoje, uma parceria operacional de luta contra o tráfico de migrantes e apoiar a Tunísia na gestão das fronteiras? Estamos a falar de pessoas e falar de pessoas é falar de direitos humanos.

Que garantias teve a presidente Von der Leyen em matéria de direitos humanos? Que exigências colocou em matéria de democracia e Estado de direito? Num país onde a democracia se esvaziou, onde não há liberdade sindical (sindicalistas detidos), onde não há liberdade de expressão (oposicionistas e jornalistas detidos), é isso que precisamos de saber: que garantias?

(End of catch-the-eye procedure)

  Maroš Šefčovič, Vice-President of the Commission. – Mr President, honourable Members, I really would like to thank you for this very intense and open and frank debate. I would like to start by expressing my gratitude for your overwhelming support for Ukraine and clear words on war crimes committed by Russia, so clearly expressed by Mr Rangel, Ms García Pérez, Mr Azmani and many others. I also would like to react to the words of Ms Vautmans and Mr Niedermayer about the importance to tackle circumvention of sanctions. I would like to reassure you that we are fully aware of this issue and the European Union Sanctions Envoy, David O’Sullivan is working on this in close cooperation with his colleagues from the US and UK on really a 24/7 basis.

I also would like to reassure many other honourable Members that we will continue also to provide the support for Ukrainian refugees, who received remarkable reception in our Member States. I think that it was the true expression of European solidarity, for which we have to express gratitude to all Member States and to all our citizens who opened their households, municipalities who opened their schools and provided shelter, especially to women and children who are fleeing the horrors of war in Ukraine.

Mr Belka and several other honourable Members referred to the importance of strengthening the competitiveness of our industry and deepening of the single market. And he was also highlighting the importance of external relations with China and the United States and the need also, in this respect, to review the multiannual financial framework. As I was indicating in my introductory remarks, we are working on that. We know that one of the priorities for the review of MFF would be to make sure that we will be able to support financially Ukraine. But of course there will be other priorities which will be reflected in that review and of course we will come and present it in great detail to this House.

Of course, most of the discussion was focused on very important issues linked with migration. Mr Rangel, Mr Schirdewan, Ms Reintke, Ms Strik have been asking very pertinent questions concerning border procedures, what kind of safeguards we are putting in place, how we want to take better care of minors and how we want to avoid a new Moria. And I would like to reassure you that the agreement of the Member States to introduce the Asylum Procedure Regulation and the mandatory border procedure comes with a purpose to quickly assess, at the EU’s external border, whether applications are unfounded or inadmissible. The procedure is mandatory for Member States if the applicant is in danger of national security or public order, he or she has misled the authorities with false information or by withholding information, and if the applicant has a nationality with a recognition rate of 20% or below. We want to do it much faster than before, and the total duration of the asylum and return border procedure should not exceed six months.

We are fully aware of your of your comments and insistence that, in order to carry out the border procedures in full respect of human rights of migrants, we need to establish adequate capacity in terms of reception and human resources to examine, at any given moment, an identified number of applications to enforce the return decisions. We are working on this and, at Union level, this adequate capacity is established at the level of 30 000.

Several of you highlighted the importance of Asylum Procedure Regulation, and I would like to reassure all of you that this proposal does not foresee the automatic use of detention. It is always used as a last resort, when necessary and proportionate, on the basis of individual assessment and subject to the judicial review. Especially if it comes to minors: as a rule, minors should not be detained. Again, only under very special circumstances, circumstances which are very precisely described in this proposal.

If you allow me on the on the last point, because it was raised by honourable Members, Mr Marques, Ms Marques, Ms Rego and Ms Strik as well. It concerns the trip of President von der Leyen, which she took together with Prime Minister Rutte and Prime Minister Meloni, to Tunisia. I think we have to look at it as a Team Europe spirit and approach. What was proposed there was a comprehensive package to invest in stability, prosperity, but also to further support Tunisia’s journey of democracy. Therefore, if you look at what was proposed to our Tunisian partners, it was not only the support for anti-smuggling operational partnership and better border management, but also investment in the economic development, macro-financial assistance and also investment in trade, which will be done by the European Investment Bank. We also see the opportunities to work with Tunisia in the field of energy and the improvement of peoples-to-peoples contact. So, we want to approach this issue in the comprehensive manner which we believe would have positive impact on all other issues we have been discussing today.

If you allow me to conclude, because my time is up, I really would like to thank you for the fervour, dynamism and in-depth knowledge of this very important issue, which is on the table of the European Union for many, many years. I believe that this energy, this collegial spirit, would allow us to proceed quickly with trilateral negotiations to make sure that all important elements of this package will be improved. I really would like to thank you for this discussion and to thank you for all the compliments which you addressed to my colleague Commissioner Ylva Johansson and the Swedish Presidency and Jessika Roswall for indeed being able to conclude the file which was in the discussion for many, many years, because I believe it opens the opportunity for the rapid conclusion on this very important issue.

  Jessika Roswall, President-in-Office of the Council. – Mr President, honourable Members, Vice-President, I thank you for this debate and for your valuable remarks and contributions. One and a half years ago, very few would have predicted where we would be today. The agenda of the European Council is a reflection of the new geopolitical, political and economic realities that Europe is facing.

I am very grateful for the European unity on the Ukraine policy, which once again has been clearly manifested in this debate here today. As Europeans, supporting the Ukrainians in their efforts is our biggest task and responsibility.

As for the economic agenda, as many of you have underlined, we must boost Europe’s long-term competitiveness and increase our productivity. To this end, the European single market is a key asset.

Let me also say on the very important topic of migration: we are heading towards peak season for arrivals along the Mediterranean routes. This will, however tragic, put pressure on Member States. In the first five months of this year, 2023, almost 65 000 irregular arrivals were recorded – two and a half times more than the same period last year. This underlines the importance of the measures that the Commission and the Member States are taking, which the Vice-President mentioned. And as several of you also have said, the recent agreement in the Council is, indeed, historic.

This also underlines the importance of moving forward with the Pact, and the Council will work hard to continue to make progress in the coming week. It’s clear from this debate also that we share the same sense of urgency and I thank Parliament for your commitment. Given the importance of the topics on the agenda, there is no doubt that the European Council will be decisive in many respects.

The preparatory work will now continue in the Council. I will share a discussion on the draft conclusions of the General Council on 27 June and, as usual, the President of the European Council will report back to Parliament after the European Council.

To Mr Devesa, who raised a question to me directly, I just want to inform him that next week we are having an informal meeting in the General Affairs Council in Stockholm and we are having a discussion on policy orientation in view of the future enlargement. And I share that is very important that we are ready for the future. With that, I will say thank you for your attention.

  President. – Thank you very much, Minister, including for reacting to our colleagues’ comments.

The debate is closed.

Written statements (Rule 171)

  Joachim Stanisław Brudziński (ECR), na piśmie. – Chociaż mówimy w tej debacie o przygotowaniach do posiedzenia Rady Europejskiej w dniach 29-30 czerwca, dyskusja toczy się przede wszystkim wokół kwestii migracji. Ale chcielibyśmy bardzo, by dyskusja objęła też podnoszony przez wiele państw członkowskich problem zbyt niskiej liczby wydaleń nielegalnych migrantów w UE do państw pochodzenia lub tranzytu. Od dawna oczekujemy też informacji na temat kroków podjętych przez KE w celu realizacji konkluzji z lutego br. na rzecz zwiększenia pomocy ukraińskim uchodźcom wojennym, w tym poprzez adekwatne wsparcie państw członkowskich ponoszących największe koszty ich utrzymania, leczenia i kształcenia.

Straszy się tu Polskę karami finansowymi. Za odmowę przyjęcia jednego migranta – będzie miała płacić około 100 tys. zł. To szokujące, że w tym samym czasie na każdego uchodźcę z Ukrainy Unia zapłaciła Polsce około 100 euro! To dyskryminacja i kpina z Polski. Polska przyjęła około 1,5-2 mln uchodźców po napaści Rosji na Ukrainę. Bez żadnego przymusu. Przymusowa relokacja migrantów jest sprzeczna z traktatami i godzi w suwerenność tak Polski, jak i innych Państw Członkowskich. Dlatego Polska będzie bronić swojej suwerenności. Kwestia relokacji została już negatywnie rozstrzygnięta w 2018 roku. Tym samym podważa się stabilizację decyzji, również tych, które w świetle traktatów powinny być niezmienne.

  Benoît Lutgen (PPE), par écrit. – Mesdames, Messieurs, le Conseil européen de juin abordera l’importante question de l’immigration. Je me réjouis que le Conseil ait enfin pu se mettre d’accord sur une position de négociation. Elle permettra de lancer le trilogue.

En outre, le 20 juin prochain, la Commission présentera sa stratégie de sécurité économique. Elle sera discutée lors du Conseil européen, en même temps que nos rapports avec la Chine. Je ne peux que souligner l’importance d’avoir une discussion approfondie des aspects stratégiques de nos relations économiques extérieures. La Chine a une stratégie délibérée d’appropriation de nos industries, de notre propriété intellectuelle et de nos infrastructures stratégiques, comme les ports.

La stratégie de sécurité économique doit comprendre à la fois un contrôle plus approfondi des investissements entrants, permettant à la Commission de bloquer certaines opérations, mais également un contrôle des investissements européens à l’étranger quand ils risquent de transférer certaines technologies essentielles à notre souveraineté ou à notre compétitivité internationale. Certains secteurs chinois comme les trains à grande vitesse sont maintenant nos plus grands concurrents, presque uniquement grâce à l’appropriation de nos technologies par les partenaires locaux de nos investisseurs. Le temps de la défense sans concession de nos intérêts est venu!

  Henna Virkkunen (PPE), kirjallinen. – Viime viikolla EU-maita vuosia hiertäneessä maahanmuuttopolitiikassa tapahtui läpimurto, kun jäsenmaat pääsivät viimein keskenään sopuun yhteisen turvapaikkapolitiikan muutoksista. Tämä on erittäin tervetullut askel. Nyt trilogeissa on syytä edetä nopeasti, sillä tilanne turvapaikanhakijoiden osalta on erittäin kriisiytynyt kovimman paineen alla olevissa maissa. On tärkeää, että kaikki jäsenmaat ovat nyt hyväksyneet sen, että kaikkien pitää ottaa vastuuta turvapaikanhakijoista. Turvapaikanhakuun liittyvien vastuiden on jakauduttava oikeudenmukaisesti jäsenmaiden kesken.

Tämä tarkoittaa, että jäsenmaiden on osallistuttava solidaarisesti vastuun jakamiseen sekä turvapaikanhakijoiden että siirtolaisten vastaanottamisessa. Se ei voi olla vain ulkorajamaiden asia. Lisäksi kanavoimalla maahanmuuttoa laillisia reittejä pitkin voimme torjua salakuljetusta ja ihmiskauppaa sekä varmistaa, että maahanmuuttajat saavat asianmukaiset oikeudet ja turvapaikanhakijat tarvittavaa suojelua. Kaikkein tärkeintä kuitenkin edelleen on kohdistaa apua lähtömaihin ja parantaa alueiden rauhaa ja vakautta sekä ihmisten elinolosuhteita omissa kotimaissaan.