A new strategy

The movement of people from one country to another is unquestiobly a major effect of globalization, which in turn may cause a vast array of complex problems. Identifying the best response to mass migration flows at global level, with landings throughout the European coasts of the Mediterranean and along the Eastern coasts of the Mediterranean is much more complex. The EU has longtime raised these questions, although in this area it has limited powers, since migration policies are mostly conceived at national level.Dialogue, cooperation. Given this situation, on November 18 the EU Commission presented “a renewed Global Approach to Migration and Mobility”, due to replace the previous proposal developed in 2005, in a different demographic, economic and political context. “The EU will be better equipped for migration governance at home and globally only if it further reinforces its dialogue and cooperation with partner countries”. Cecilia Malmström, Commissioner for Home Affairs, presented the cornerstone of the strategy, that encompasses reflections based on recent events, notably in the light of the events in North Africa and the incoming migrations to Italy and Malta. The purpose is to adopt a set of common measures in various fields such as: control and security, asylum, inclusion, education and employment, cooperation for development. The EU, states the Commission, “The EU needs to boost its relationships with non-EU States to better reap the mutual benefits migration can bring”. The “Arab spring and events in the Southern Mediterranean in 2011 further highlighted the need for a coherent and comprehensive migration policy for the EU”.Foreign and Home affairs. The “European Commission proposes to strengthen dialogue and operational cooperation with non-EU partner countries”, deepening “the proposals contained in the Communication on a Partnership and Shared Prosperity with the Southern Mediterranean, of 8 May”. The “Global approach” – which completes a set of proposals submitted by the Commission in May 2011 – places “mobility of third country nationals at its centre”, it applies to “a wide range of people, such as short-term visitors, tourists, students, researchers, business people or visiting family members” and linked to visa policy. The initiatives proposed – due to undergo the approval of EU27 – will “be more integrated with EU foreign policy” and development cooperation, involving the European External Action Service. The strategy advanced by the Barroso College “will be better aligned with EU’s internal policy objectives”, notably the Europe 2020 Strategy, but also “employment and education policies”. A fourth pillar. The Renewed Global Approach “complements the three traditional pillars of the Global Approach – legal migration, irregular migration, and migration and development with a fourth pillar on international protection and the external dimension of asylum policy”; it will be more migrant-centered, “with the aim of empowering migrants and strengthening their human rights in countries of origin, transit and destination”. In the meantime it will “Continue to prioritise EU Neighbourhood, EU-Africa Partnership and countries in the east, and it will intensify cooperation with the countries of departure of migrants”. A dedicated website. Along with the new strategy, the Commission launched the online EU Immigration Portal (http://ec.europa.eu/immigration), that “provides practical information to non EU citizens wishing to migrate to the EU”. The website is also directed to EU citizens wishing to move to another EU country. It provides “specific information for each category of migrants about migration procedures in all 27 Member States”. Commissioner Malmström said: “Many people who want to move to the European Union do not know what possibilities exist, how to apply for a resident permit or the risks related to irregular migration”. Indeed, “migrants who are already in the EU are not always aware of their rights. We need to provide solid, easily accessible information about these sometimes complicated procedures”.