The Netherlands and a number of other EU member states are calling for intercepted asylum seekers to be diverted to non-EU countries.
There they would have to wait to see whether they will be granted asylum in the European Union, according to a letter to the European Commission that the Member States are working on. Asylum seekers who have exhausted all legal remedies could also be accommodated there until their return journey.
The Netherlands and supporters such as Denmark and the Czech Republic point the committee to the example of Italy, which has concluded an agreement with Albania, say sources from The Hague and Brussels. Italy will transfer asylum seekers it has intercepted in the Mediterranean to that non-EU country. There they then go through the asylum procedure.
The letter will be a call for the European Commission to enter into more partnerships, with the Turkey deal as an example, insiders say. The letter did not contain any concrete plans. Because the final touches have not yet been made, it is not yet clear exactly which ideas the countries will submit to the committee. According to sources, the controversial British Rwanda deal does not serve as a model in any case. This would mean that the EU would deport asylum seekers to another country without the prospect of asylum in the union.
Objection
Human rights and aid organizations object to the agreements between Italy and Albania. But the European Commission has so far ruled that they do not violate European rules.
After the 2015 migration crisis, the EU first made agreements on stopping migrants, at the time with Turkey. These were initially controversial, but since then agreements have been reached with Tunisia, Egypt and Lebanon, among others
