Greek Diplomatic Life Official Site
Editorial
September 2024
Issue Number 536
The recent decision to suspend the Schengen Treaty, a symbol and pillar of paramount importance for the European Union as a whole, is a major blow not only in terms of the future of European integration, but also in terms of its achievements and will trigger a dynamic of total division of the EU of 27.
This is a huge European failure, since, instead of strengthening European cooperation, we have the autonomy of national policies and their slipping into unilateral actions at the expense of both the neighbours, as well as the other partners.
Unfortunately, the ‘Europe à la carte’ line has been evident since the 1990s, later with the one-sided strategic energy partnerships, after with the apathy of the neo-colonial and gun-powder diplomacy from 3rd countries in the EU periphery, but the moment of brutal truth came with the financial crisis in the fall of 2008.
With a painful memory for Greece, the ‘Mercozi’ tailored pact, then tried to change European contracts in order to restore confidence in the market as “letting the genie out of the bottle”, by excluding other members from the decision-making process! Experimentally and ruthlessly, they made it clear from the beginning that support for member countries facing a debt crisis is not a given. Basic facts to Greece’s debt issue was that almost none of the huge amount of money loaned to Greece has actually come here, it has gone to pay out private-sector creditors – mostly German and French banks.
So, at present, just five months after the European Parliament ratified the new Pact on Migration and Asylum, the passage of which was seen as a crucial step to save the Schengen area, it is suspended and that is major setback for European integration.
But why all this panic? Because the far-Right ideology gains momentum? And then what? We keep competing to a dead-end populist arena? Adopting its extreme slogans and policies with the aim of limiting its influence has been amply proven to be a tactical manoeuvre that doesn’t work. Europe needs a legal, secure targeted and selective immigration, according to the needs of its economy and the priorities of its societies. A prerequisite for such a realistic approach, which is not included in the new Pact and is the core of the problem, is that it is only anticipated ‘obligatory solidarity’ and not ‘mandatory relocation’.
In reality the whole discussion of secondary migration flows is misleading, as the generative cause of the problem is the primary flows from EU’s external borders. The EU needs to establish immigration evaluation mechanisms in 3rd countries that are safe, protect its borders and combat the networks of traffickers who exploit people’s need and pain.
Nicolas Boutsicos
Managing Director – Editor
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