Speech: Remarks by Commissioner Avramopoulos following the afternoon session of the Justice and Home Affairs Council

Dear friends,

As we finish the last JHA Council of the Dutch Presidency, I would like to thank my friend Klaas Dijkhoff i for the work done in the last few months on migration, borders and visa issues.

We have come a long way on these issues since last summer, but we still have a lot of work to do as another summer lies in front of us. 

Crucial in all this is the full and successful implementation of the EU-Turkey statement. 

The results speak for themselves. Arrivals on Greek islands continue to decrease, while returns to Turkey have increased.

It is now time to drastically increase resettlements from Turkey, as well as relocations from Greece and Italy.

Yesterday, 139 people were relocated from Greece to France in one single transfer - this is the example to be followed now. In total, 2,195 persons in need of international protection have been relocated so far, 1,420 from Greece and 775 from Italy.

But still, tens of thousands of people remain stranded in Greece and Italy. The situation on the ground will not improve unless Member States move faster on relocation.

In Greece as you know, Idomeni has been evacuated. Security in the hotspots has been stepped up, especially in areas where the Greek Asylum Service and EASO operate.  

Greece still needs our support to improve the reception conditions and capacities in the hotspots on the islands, and speed up the asylum application of the more than 50,000 persons present on its territory.

To better manage migration on EU territory, we have to clear these hurdles. In the meantime, arrivals to Italy from North Africa are increasing like last year. 

Today we discussed the 'Partnership Framework'/compact proposed by the Commission with key third countries of origin and transit. 

In this framework, the Commission intends to engage in a frank dialogue with countries of transit and origin and use effective incentives. Incentives that ensure the interests of both parties are fully taken into account.

We aim to be immediately operational. We can't just wait for the seasons of arrivals to be over.

But we need a clear EU mandate. I hope that the European Council will endorse our approach.

The Western Balkans Leaders meeting and the recent work on the EU-Turkey statement prove that we are able to act together in an operational manner, under a clear European mandate and leadership.

We need to replicate the same level of ambition and political coherence.

Last but not least, the reform of our Common European Asylum System is also an essential element of European policy on Migration.

I look forward to working with the Slovak Presidency on this in the coming weeks and months.

We need to move towards a fairer and more equitable asylum system for all Member States that prevents secondary movements and facilitates the enforcement of the EU rules.

Finally, we exchanged on the Commission's visa liberalisation proposals for Georgia, Ukraine, Kosovo and Turkey. The Commission has been very clear in its recommendations.

I hope that progress in the Council and Parliament will come soon.

Thank you.