An EU proposal to suspend asylum during migration surges reflects tension between border security and fundamental rights.
Greek proposal for emergency powers
Greece has asked the European Union to let member states temporarily stop accepting asylum applications during mass migration emergencies.
Greek Migration Minister Thanos Plevris argued the bloc's existing migration pact, which began in June, cannot sufficiently handle situations like Spain's recent crisis in its North African enclave of Ceuta.
Dutch Migration Minister Bart van den Brink supported the idea on Thursday, calling large-scale arrivals a border management issue, not an asylum issue.
Background of the Ceuta crisis
The proposal is a response to an estimated 72,000 migrants entering Ceuta in late July, an event Spain considered a crisis.
Though most migrants returned, Spain's government said about 10,000 remain, spurring calls in several EU capitals for stricter migration policies.
The event revived political concerns from the 2015 migration influx, which boosted support for nationalist parties across Europe.
New return rules and legal concerns
At the same meeting, EU interior ministers approved a new rule letting member states create return hubs outside the bloc for migrants who cannot be sent to their home countries.
Several countries, including Denmark, Austria, and the Netherlands, are exploring such hubs, with Dutch officials reporting a technical mission visited a potential host country in September.
EU Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner stressed that any measures must still comply with fundamental rights and international law. Critics of the return hubs argue they violate migrants' rights.
Coverage
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