The Czech Republic, Austria and other countries in Central Europe are forming a coalition which opposes demands by the European Union that they meet certain quotas on accepting migrants.
ABC News reports:
The Latest: 6 Central Europe nations vow unity on migrationDefense officials of six Central European countries and the Balkans have pledged close cooperation in tackling migration with all possible means including use of armed forces.The countries — Austria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia and Slovenia — have created a grouping called the Central European Defense Cooperation and want to be a role model for the entire European Union.Among the group’s goals is that all migrants who want to apply for asylum in EU countries have to do it in centers outside the bloc.Austrian Defense Minister Hans Peter Doskozil said after a meeting in Prague on Monday that his country has been preparing a detailed action plan of cooperation for the six whose military forces will train in a joint drill in next few months.
Here’s another report from Euronews about actions the EU is taking to punish these nations:
Michael Brendan Dougherty reports on the EU reaction at National Review:
Listen to Eastern EuropeThe European Union announced this week that it would begin proceedings to punish Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic for their refusal to accept refugees and migrants under a 2015 scheme the E.U. commission created. The mission’s aim was to relieve Greece and Italy of the burden from migrant waves arriving from the Middle East and Africa, largely facilitated by European rescues of migrants in the Mediterranean.The conflict between the EU and these three nations of the Visegrád Group is not just about the authority the EU can arrogate to itself when facing an emergency (one largely of its own making), but about the character of European government and society in the future. It is hard not to conclude that the dissenting countries are correct to dissent. Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia had voted against the 2015 agreement. Poland’s government had supported it then, but a subsequent election saw a new party come into power that rejected the scheme.There is no doubt that Italy and Greece are under strain. This week the mayor of Rome, Virginia Raggi, pleaded with the Italian government to stop the inflow of people to her city. Raggi is a member of the Five Star Movement a Euroskeptic and anti-mass-migration association. Her election was a distress signal in itself, sent by the electorate. And Raggi has sent another such signal to Italy’s government, saying that it is “impossible, as well as risky to think up further accommodation structures.”
Remember during the Brexit vote, when supporters said they didn’t want bureaucrats in Brussels telling them what to do? This is one of the things they were talking about:
Part of what’s fueling this fight on both sides is the tidal wave of migrants in Africa who are just waiting for the chance to flood into Europe.
The Telegraph reports:
Up to 6.6m migrants waiting to cross to Europe from Africa: reportEurope could face a new wave of migrant arrivals this summer, a leaked German government report has warned. Up to 6.6m people are waiting in countries around the Mediterranean to cross into Europe, according to details of the classified report leaked to Bild newspaper.They include more than 2.5m in North Africa waiting to attempt the perilous crossing by boat. Angela Merkel’s government has not commented on the report, which the newspaper says was marked for internal use only.There are fears of a dramatic rise in arrivals as the summer weather turns favourable for sea crossings. Growing numbers of migrants are known to be attempting to reach Europe by boat in the wake of the closure of the Balkan land route last year.
Featured image via YouTube.
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