Copenhagen Forum focuses on a united EU migration and asylum policy

Vice-Minister of the Interior Arnoldas Abramavičius participated in the German-Nordic-Baltic 2022 forum, where he discussed the need for a unified migration and asylum policy in the EU.

According to Vice-Minister Abramavičius, it is necessary to adapt EU migration and asylum policy to new realities, striking a balance between the right of individuals to asylum a swell as national and EU-wide security. He stressed that decisions on curbing irregular migration at EU level have been pending for more than a year.

"The hybrid attack of the Belarusian regime against Lithuania and the European Union continues. We must have the legal and practical means to defend ourselves. In the current geopolitical situation, the EU's normal rules on asylum and migration are no longer appropriate. We need a new policy, otherwise we will remain extremely vulnerable to Russia and Belarus - countries that do not know what international obligations are", said Deputy Minister Abramavičius.

The new migration and asylum pact has become a new starting point for further discussions. According to the Vice-Minister, in order to achieve a unified migration policy, it is important to distinguish between normal migration and the use of authoritarian regimes as an instrument to exert political pressure on democratic countries. He welcomed the European Commission's efforts to address the instrumentalization of migration and to impose sanctions on transport operators involved in migrant smuggling.

At the meeting, the Vice-Minister noted that Lithuania cannot accept a permanent solidarity mechanism with mandatory quotas calculated according to a one-size-fits-all formula. This is not only due to limited reception capacities, but also to other factors that need to be taken into account, such as the pull factor that a permanent mechanism would create. However, the Vice-Minister stressed that Lithuania has participated responsibly and consistently in all solidarity programs for the resettlement and relocation of asylum seekers and will continue to do so within its capacity.