As the proposal for a new European Pact on Migration and Asylum was unveiled on September 23, 2020, the various measures under consideration raise many questions.
The most pressing ones concern the establishment of the new system for pre-entry control into European territory. But more importantly, the reform of the Dublin Regulation, which involves the relocation of certain asylum seekers to the less burdened countries.
While the deployment of the new European coastguards and border guards has been effective since January 1, the negotiations around the terms of the pact will clarify the details of the new principle of solidarity that binds the member states and the current reform of the Dublin Regulation.
The debates are likely to be stormy, as the Twenty-Seven and the European Parliament are divided between supporters of greater solidarity through the relocation of asylum seekers arriving in the most burdened countries and advocates of a policy focused solely on returns to countries of origin. The proposal also emphasizes the need to succeed in repatriating a larger number of illegal migrants. This intention, at the heart of the program, nevertheless raises the question of its feasibility.
