The reduction of irregular arrivals in the countries of the European Union continued, according to a report on immigration presented by the Commission.
"The reduction of irregular arrivals continued throughout 2017 and the first months of 2018, while efforts continue to save lives, address the root causes, protect Europe's external borders and further strengthen cooperation with international partners ”.
He added that efforts should continue.
"As the situation remains generally fragile, additional joint efforts are needed from the Member States and the EU, in particular to strengthen financial resources to ensure a continuous and effective response to the migration challenge."
The report states in detail
The report notes significant progress in improving cooperation with countries of origin on return.
The Commission is also proposing today to introduce a new mechanism to activate stricter visa requirements when a partner country does not cooperate sufficiently on readmission.
The Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management, Christos Stylianidis, mentioned on the occasion of the Commission's proposals for the replenishment of the specific financial instrument.
"EU humanitarian aid for refugees in Turkey has yielded tangible results, from facilitating the education of children to providing access to basic services for vulnerable families. "The new funding will allow us to continue working with Turkey and humanitarian organizations to help vulnerable refugees and their host communities."
In relation to the relocation program, the report notes that it is successfully completing it. About 34 000 people - more than 96% of all eligible candidates registered - have been relocated, with the contribution of almost all Member States. The transfer of the remaining applicants (149 in Greece, 933 in Italy) is under preparation. The EU resettlement program approved in July 2015 was also successfully completed in 2017, with the safe transfer of approximately 19 vulnerable people to Europe and the resumption of resettlement under the EU-Turkey declaration. As part of the Commission's new relocation program, which is designed for at least 432 refugees, 50 Member States have committed about 000 to date.
It also notes that the EU Trust Fund for Africa continues to play a key role in tackling the root causes and providing protection to migrants and refugees along the way.
Finally, the EU-Turkey declaration continues to bear fruit, as irregular and dangerous arrivals are still down 97% compared to the period before the declaration was operational. The Commission is currently launching the payment of the second tranche of the EUR 3 billion Refugee Facility in Turkey, as the first part of the Facility was fully available through contracts by the end of 2017.
At the same time, the Commission notes that the European Border and Coast Guard currently provides support to national border guards with 1 delegated experts along all migration routes, but more staff and equipment contributions are needed to maintain current operations.
At the same time, efforts are being made to develop a European integrated border management strategy to reflect the fact that the EU's external borders are common borders that require collective and joint action by national and EU authorities.