EP President Roberta METSOLA, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander DE CROO and EC President Ursula VON DER LEYEN speak to the press following the votes on the reform of the EU’s asylum and migration rules. This transcription is a result of an automatic process. Please check against delivery.

Brussels

migration and refugees in Europe (T)

press conference

METSOLA, Roberta (EPP, MT, EP President)

DE CROO, Alexander (BE)

VON DER LEYEN, Ursula (DE, EC)

president's agenda

new pact on asylum and migration (T)

Press point by Roberta METSOLA, EP President, Alexander DE CROO, Belgian Prime Minister and Ursula VON DER LEYEN, President of the European Commission following the votes on the reform of the EU’s asylum and migration rules

https://api.multimedia.europarl.europa.eu/documents/20125/75817690/1712764114094_I255446Chapters%5BSD-EN%5D.srt

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, Good evening to you all. The European Parliament has just voted in favour of a new way forward on asylum and migration. We have listened. We have acted and we have delivered on one of the main concerns of people across Europe. This is a historic day for Europe. I want to thank members of the European Parliament who have spent years working on this. Thank you to successive presidencies who pushed this forward despite the difficulties, and the Belgian presidency and Prime minister De Croo in particular, for pulling it over the finish line. Thank you so much also to Commissioner Johansson and her team, Vice President Schinas, and President von der Leyen for their commitment to seeing this through.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, This new asylum and migration pact has ushered in new laws that had been more than ten years in the making. Today, we have voted in favour of a package that provides for a robust legislative framework that is the same in all Member States, that puts humanity first, that understands all the different, difficult aspects of this issue, that secures Europe's external borders, that provides clarity on applicable rules, that ensures the right balance between solidarity and responsibility in full respect of fundamental rights.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, We promised a new system that is fair with those eligible for protection, that is firm with those who are not. And that is strong against the traffickers and the networks preying on the most vulnerable of people. Tonight, we have delivered on that promise. Now, this package goes a long way. It will not magically solve every issue overnight, but it is ten giant leaps forward. It will simplify procedures. It will reduce lengthy application processes. It will increase and intensify coordination. And ultimately, it will ensure that those who are in desperate, urgent and legitimate need for protection, get it and get it fast.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, It ensures that no Member State will be left alone again to cope with the pressure. Whether that state is in the Mediterranean or on other land routes. Whether it is those states dealing with secondary movements or those states facing down hybrid threats and instrumentalization of migration, as we have seen in recent months. This is a legislative acknowledgement that for a European issue we must have a European response. Critically, these new laws recognise that migration is above all a human issue and that behind each heartbreaking statistic is a life, a dream, a name.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, Today, this Parliament has shown that Europe lives up to its responsibility and its promises. That is what is at the heart of this pact. There is, of course, still more to do on returns on working with our partner countries. We will keep up the work. This package has all the potential to make a real difference to prevent deaths at sea and address an issue that has been left on the back burner for far too long. Now, we must make sure that what has been agreed to is fully implement it in all our Member States, and that implementation goes hand in hand with the respect for our shared humanity, because that is the European way.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ursula VON DER LEYEN, EC President, Thank you very much. Today is indeed a historic day. After years of intense work, the Pact of Migration and Asylum becomes a reality. It is a huge achievement for Europe, and this excellent achievement is built on the outstanding work of so many. So, let me start by thanking Vice-President Schinas and Commissioner Johansson for your amazing work. Tireless work. You and your teams have worked so hard over so many years to make this day happen. Now, it's here. You made it. Dear Roberta, I also want to thank you and the European Parliament for your dedication and for the excellent cooperation. This was really amazing and I want to thank the successive Council presidencies. And I start with you, dear Alexander, the Belgian presidency, who got us over the finish line. Thank you so much.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ursula VON DER LEYEN, EC President, We all understand this fundamental truth. Migration is a European challenge, which must be met with a European solution, one that is effective and both fair and firm. And this is what the pact on Migration and Asylum delivers. It will be making a real difference for all Europeans. First, more secure European borders, knowing exactly who crosses our borders by registering and screening everyone while ensuring the protection of the fundamental rights through an independent monitoring.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ursula VON DER LEYEN, EC President, Second, faster, more efficient procedures for asylum and return. This means that those with no right to asylum will not be able to not be allowed to enter the European Union while those escaping war or persecution can count on the protection they need. The pact strikes the right balance between stricter rule against the abuse of the system and care for the most vulnerable.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ursula VON DER LEYEN, EC President, And third, more solidarity with the Member States at our external borders, because they manage the pressure from illegal migration. So, all Member States will be part of this solidarity effort, but they will choose how best to do it. And at the same time, secondary movement within the European Union cannot be allowed. The new rules foresee closer collaboration between Member States to stop secondary movements. In essence, the pact is about how best to pull our weight together. We will do it in a way that respects our obligation as part of the international community to support those with the right to international protection. We have fulfilled in the past and we will continue to do so. But we must be the ones to decide who comes to the European Union and under what circumstances, and not the smugglers and traffickers.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ursula VON DER LEYEN, EC President, With the pact in place, we have the legal framework we need. This is one leg. The second leg is our operational support to Member States. We will continue to bring them tailored solution on border management, the fight against smugglers and returns. And we will continue to respond to crises from Lampedusa to Finland's border, from the Canary Islands to Cyprus. In parallel, we will also press ahead with our work with global partners, developing partnerships with countries of origin and transit so that we can address the root causes of migration together. This engagement has become an essential pillar of our work, and it is delivering. To conclude, I'm proud to say we deliverd a European solution. But our work is not done yet, it must be with the same determination and unity, that has let us to this day, that has to guide us to make us this pact a true success in Europe. Thank you.

SOUNDBITE (English), Alexander DE CROO, Belgian Prime Minister, Thank you. First of all thank you Roberta and thank you Ursula for very kind words. Let me join to thanks that have been given to two people who have put so much of their effort in adapting our proposals and making compromises and in coming to an agreement. I would like to to add to that to that big group, our Belgian State Secretary, Nicole de Moor, for taking of that file and and to bringing it into into safe haven. Nicole, you really did a tremendous work and you answered to the expectations of a population throughout Europe.

SOUNDBITE (English), Alexander DE CROO, Belgian Prime Minister, Every day, we see that migrants risk their lives to try to reach Europe. Most of these men, women and children are victims of criminals, smugglers, human traffickers who decide who gets to go to Europe and who does not get to go to Europe. Our citizens expect us to organise migration in an orderly way. And this pact on migration and asylum aims to change that immoral and illegal business system that is being used way too often.

SOUNDBITE (English), Alexander DE CROO, Belgian Prime Minister, And we have here a pact which takes an important first step, an important first step in taking back control, in monitoring our external borders, and in offering protection to people who are entitled to have protection. As being said, migration is a complex phenomenon of all times, and there is no miracle solution to that. But this pact offers the Member States the tools to better control and to better steer the flows of migration.

SOUNDBITE (English), Alexander DE CROO, Belgian Prime Minister, Parliament has voted, and we are happy with the votes of Parliament. Now we have to get to work, and the implementation of this will be launched very soon politically with the ministerial conference, which will take place in Ghent next month. This means we have to get to work to put these agreements into actions and that means three main elements to us.

SOUNDBITE (English), Alexander DE CROO, Belgian Prime Minister, First of all, better protect our borders to prevent illegal border crossings. Secondly, better spread the migration burden to all Member States. And third, I would say above all, make sure that Europe is only reached by asylum seekers who are entitled to have protection. That also means that we will continue to make agreements with third countries like we did successfully with Tunisia, with Turkey, with Egypt, with Mauritania. These agreements are the type of agreements that we need to make because we do it in a partnership. And I think a recent visit to Egypt demonstrated it again that migration can only be addressed if we do it with mutually beneficial partnerships with the countries of origin and of transit.

SOUNDBITE (English), Alexander DE CROO, Belgian Prime Minister, In recent months, agreements like that have been made in Mauritania, in Tunis and in Cairo, and I think it has shown our capacity as a European Union to come to balanced comprehensive agreements with the countries in our neighbourhood. I hope we are now in a in a momentum and that you keep that momentum. It is an important step. I want to congratulate everyone who has worked on this. This is only a first starting point to stop the smugglers and to better protect our borders. It is a first step, but it is a very important first step.

Q&A, Question regarding on how the pact can help the forefront countries in practice and what kind of challenges there might be.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, So I can tell you with a definite yes. Coming from one of the countries that you mention, this has been a request, a plea, if I could say, for many years that countries that are on the front line, whether they have a sea border or a land border, it's important to say, are not left alone. That the individual pieces of the legislative pact, whether it is the crisis instrument, the border procedure, Eurodac, which will look at the details of who enters, who apply for asylum, reception conditions. These are all individual elements that will serve to address the concerns long held of frontline Member States.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, But I would like to add one more issue. In 2015, for the first time, there were countries that were not only the ones in the South that said they were on the front line. In 2020 and 2021, we saw the instrumentalization of migrants across the Polish, Belarussian and Baltic borders. Earlier this year, we saw the instrumentalization of migrants around along the Russian and Finnish border, and that in order for us to show, even with solutions that we inserted inside the pact, across all the instruments that the frontline is also now meaning something different to what it used to mean in 2015, 2016, earlier and a little bit later. And that means that all of Europe will share that responsibility for those who are truly in need of protection. And again, across all the instances, fundamental rights will be protected.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ursula VON DER LEYEN, EC President, So indeed, the big challenge and promise. We have said it is important for us to acknowledge this is a European challenge, migration, irregular migration, which needs a European answer. And for the countries the answer is no Member State will be left alone. And for that, we have introduced mechanisms to make sure that Member States under pressure get help. The mandatory solidarity is a solidarity among our Member States. Of course, they can choose whether they want to relocate migrants or want to show solidarity, in-kind or financially. But important is Europe at its best is always when Europe is standing as one and showing solidarity among the Member States. And this is what the Pact for Migration and Asylum is now costing into law.

SOUNDBITE (English), Alexander DE CROO, Belgian Prime Minister, Just to add to that, this respect built on what is, as Europeans, our strongest point. That is cooperation is solidarity. And we know that related to Asylum and Migration, there are moments in certain countries that are in a difficult situation, and for once we acknowledge that and we have a mechanism to help out countries. We also know that protecting our borders is something that we need to do together. All countries in the end are responsible to protect the outside borders, specifically on implementation. As being mentioned, we have a ministerial conference which is taking place end of this month, and it really shows our ambition to immediately take the next step after this, from our perspective, for a successful vote which took place.

Q&A, Question regarding on their point of view on parties not supporting the Asylum and Migration Pact. Second question on political gains during the upcoming campaign.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, So first of all, this was a Democratic vote, some of which results were quite close, but this is something that one would expect with files that are politically sensitive, such as the ones that we adopted today. I would answer yes to your question if the pact had not passed. I am a candidate in these elections of the European Parliament and I can tell you that our citizens for years have asked for a European response. This is what we have delivered today, and we will be able to, unlike in 2019, is go to our citizens and say that we have delivered. It's not ready. It's not a solution to all the challenges. There is still a lot of work to do. However, we have really given a legislative response to a European plea that our citizens have asked across all Member States for many, many years.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ursula VON DER LEYEN, EC President, We have worked very hard to find a common solution, and we deliver. This is the main message today. Politics deliver. We have delivered for the Europeans what they have been asking for. And Europe has decided to work together and to face the challenges together, because we know as 27 as one European Union, we have incredible strength and we can manage migration. We have now the legal basis for strong external borders. Every migrant coming to these borders will be treated the same way. Fair and firm. Those who need protection will be protected, but those who are not in need of protections have to return to their home country.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ursula VON DER LEYEN, EC President, And another point is important. We are working together with neighbouring countries to make sure that we invest in their economies. We create partnerships. We invest in the education system, for example, in talent partnerships to make sure that Europe is willing, together with the neighbouring countries, to work on legal migration. Legal migration is the best tool just to destroy the narrative of the smugglers and traffickers. What we do not want is that smugglers and traffickers dominate the scene. So, together we will fight this organised crime, but we will make sure that in a partnership way, we have a relationship with the neighbouring that ensure that safe and legal migration is possible.

SOUNDBITE (English), Alexander DE CROO, Belgian Prime Minister, Just on certain people who try to block this vote. Blocking this vote means that you agree with the status quo. And I think that's not a good thing. The status quo means that certain countries have difficulties in managing the migration flows. We see that people are being subject to criminal activities, to human smugglers. No one could agree with the status quo. I hope and this is a compromise, but it's a compromise that breaks the status quo. And that's what is expected from us, I think. Thank you very much.