4. It will backfire.
Europe’s goal is to subcontract the control of its external borders. To achieve that goal, it is willing to pay, in the form of money and unlikely alliances. Turkey’s regime magically changed from a ‘threat to human rights’ to ‘a trusted ally with a changing humour’.
But even Turkey looks like a sophisticated democracy when compared with some of the autocracies that populate the African and Middle Eastern maps. Partnering with them is not only a dangerous game with unexpected consequences, but is also a torpedo in Europe’s ethical waterline.
Not quite the message you want to send when the very fundamentals of the Union are being challenged in so many countries.
5. Alternatives are possible, but they take political savvy.
It is time to opt for a less defensive approach and be strategic about it. The hysteria and gross manipulation that has driven the public debate in the past months should give way to regained leadership, new alliances, and some simple truths.
The number of admitted refugees could be easily expanded and reallocated in countries (such as Spain) that have so far ignored popular support for increased efforts. But this goes beyond refugees and asylum-seekers: unlike other large destination regions, such as Canada, the EU has been incapable of aligning the reformist forces behind the new institutions and legal paths that would match economic migration with the needs of aging and less productive economies.
The Commission’s proposal for a reformed Blue Card regime for qualified migrants is a welcomed but clearly insufficient attempt.
It is no wonder that the EU’s ‘plan’ has been welcomed by a large number of European parliamentarians and national politicians, desperate to delegate their responsibilities. But this latest move is both a non-starter for the migration crisis and an obscene distortion of the principles that should govern aid and development policies. It should be rejected.
A version of this blog was first published on El Pais.
