Germany: All EU Members Must Take in Migrants

by Soeren Kern • December 5, 2019 at 5:00 am

The continuing debate over migration is, at its core, about European federalism and the degree to which the European Union will be allowed to usurp decision-making powers from its 28 member states.
If everything goes according to plan, the draft legislation would be adopted by the European Parliament in the second half of 2020 when Germany holds the presidency of the EU. It would then be ratified by the European Council, made up of the leaders of the EU member states.
"We fundamentally reject illegal migration. We also reject allowing smuggling gangs to decide who will live in Europe." — Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš.
"The V4's [Visegrád group: Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia] position is clear. We are not willing to admit any illegal migrants into central Europe. The success and security of central Europe is thanks to our pursuit of a firm anti-migration policy, and this will endure.... Hungarians insist on our right to decide whom to allow into our country and with whom we wish to live." — Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó.

German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer has unveiled a new plan to reform the European asylum system. A leaked draft of the proposal shows that all member states of the EU would be required to take in illegal migrants. (Photo by Michele Tantussi/Getty Images)

German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer has unveiled a new plan to reform the European asylum system. A draft of the proposal leaked to the media shows that all member states of the European Union would be required to take in illegal migrants.

Countries in Central and Eastern Europe are opposed to mandatory relocations on the basis that decisions about the granting of residence permits should be kept at the national level. They have noted that by unilaterally imposing migrant quotas on EU member states, unelected bureaucrats in Brussels are seeking to force the democratically elected leaders of Europe to submit to their diktat.

Indeed, the continuing debate over migration is, at its core, about European federalism and the degree to which the European Union will be allowed to usurp decision-making powers from its 28 member states.

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Blame Others, Not Trump, for NATO's Divisions

by Con Coughlin • December 5, 2019 at 4:00 am

While getting NATO's finances in order clearly remains a pressing priority for the Trump administration, the real divisions at the summit have been caused by the conduct of the Europeans, most notably France and Turkey.
Turkey's recent decision to purchase Russia's S-400 anti-aircraft missile system, which was designed specifically to shoot down NATO warplanes, has been another serious bone of contention at the summit.
Turkey's important geographical location means that NATO leaders have previously been reluctant to sanction Ankara for its increasingly pro-Russian outlook, which is very much at odds with NATO's position that Russia poses the most significant threat to the alliance's security.

If there is one clear lesson to be drawn from the NATO summit just held in London to mark the alliance's 70th anniversary, it is that the Europeans, and not Donald Trump, are to blame for many of the divisions that exist between the NATO's 29-member states. Pictured: NATO leaders at the summit on December 4, 2019. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Prior to the summit, during which leaders of the alliance attended glitzy receptions at Buckingham Palace and Downing Street, much of the focus centred on the American president and persistent fears that he might carry out his threat to withdraw the US from the alliance.

Mr Trump's unhappiness with NATO is well-documented, and dates back to the NATO summit in Brussels in July 2018 when, during a testy exchange over the failure of most European member states to pay their fair share towards NATO's running costs, Mr Trump made a direct threat to withdraw the US from the organisation.

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