‘Europe has learned from 2015’, EU migration chief says

Sweden’s Ylva Johansson was a minister in Stefan Löfven’s authorities in 2015 when the European migration disaster noticed tens of millions of Syrian refugees arrive on Europe’s shores.

Stockholm took in 135,000 refugees that 12 months, principally from Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan, after which 163,000 extra in 2016, essentially the most per capita of another European state.

Because it did so, nations in southeastern Europe have been knocking down the shutters. Neighbouring Denmark closed its border with Germany. The European Union warned international locations in opposition to hampering freedom of motion however might do little to cease it.

“I keep in mind my feeling then,” Johansson recollects, seven years later. “How alone we felt.”

As Europe faces a brand new migration disaster as tens of millions of Ukrainians flee the Russian invasion, the continent is arguably nonetheless residing with the repercussions of 2015, which fed a populist right-wing narrative in Europe and the US and noticed hardline governments elected and emboldened from Slovenia to Poland to Hungary. Some stay in energy at present.

Even liberal Sweden has hardened on refugees. The Social Democrats – whose chief, Löfven, as soon as mentioned that his was a rustic that didn’t construct partitions – has proposed banning companies from hiring non-EU nationals forward of a major election problem from the far-right Swedish Democrats.

For Johansson, now European Commissioner for House Affairs, the failures of the aftermath of 2015 was two-fold. On the one hand, European nations acted principally unilaterally of their response to the disaster, with some opening their borders and others closing them. On the opposite, not sufficient was carried out to combine refugees once they arrived in Europe.

“We have now realized a lesson, I hope, from 2015,” she advised Euronews.

This week Brussels launched the Short-term Safety Directive, a 2001 regulation that may enable Ukrainian nationals displaced by the warfare to right away qualify for housing, healthcare, employment, and education for his or her youngsters. Not like in 2015, the settlement of refugees can be shared throughout all of the EU’s member states.

“After all, all Ukrainians wish to be prepared to return quickly, however sadly, it looks like issues are getting worse and we’re going to see tens of millions and tens of millions extra to come back,” Johansson mentioned. “There may be going to be big stress on our societies, I’m not naive, however I believe there is a chance now to behave very in another way.”

The truth that Europe was in a position to act so rapidly and effectively to the Ukrainian refugee disaster compared to 2015 has led to criticism in some quarters, the place it has been famous that almost all of Ukrainian arrivals are white and Christian moderately than Arab Muslims, as was the case seven years in the past. Johansson dismissed the concept that the safety directive method may very well be widened to use to all refugees arriving in Europe.

“They’ve other forms of safety, lots of them have asylum right here and are a part of our society,” she mentioned.

“I believe one distinction is that individuals at the moment are fleeing instantly from Ukraine, when individuals are coming from a bit bit distant they’re often utilizing smugglers to get right here.”

As for whether or not she helps Ukraine turning into a member of the EU, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksyy has known as for, she mentioned it might take time.

“Ukraine belongs to Europe. They’re preventing for our values. Being a proper member of the EU is sort of an extended journey, however their emotional belonging is there,” she mentioned.