English Section

Polands seeks changes in EU border policies on migration

17.02.2024 09:30
In a meeting with his Finnish counterpart on Friday, the Polish prime minister said that both countries believe that European Union asylum laws need to be revised, calling them “inadequate” in light of the current migration challenges and threats posed by Russia and Belarus, the Associated Press reported.
Donald Tusk
Donald TuskPAP/Radek Pietruszka

The statement came during a working visit by Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo to Warsaw, where the two leaders discussed security concerns for their countries, the European Union, and NATO members.

The meeting reflected a broader European discourse on security, defense cooperation, and agricultural stability in the context of ongoing geopolitical tensions, the PAP news agency reported.

Politicians also talked about the current migration situation, as both nations share borders with Russia while Poland also borders Belarus and Ukraine, which is fighting a war against Russia’s aggression.

Tusk said both Poland and Finland countries want to “cooperate with other nations in the region toward the strengthening of their borders and defenses, and also civilian defenses in response to Russia’s aggressive policies”, the AP reported.

Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo called the current security situation “critical”, and said that “Finland and Poland are ready to cooperate toward a tough, pan-European policy toward illegal migration. Following his statement Tusk added that both countries were also “interested in a reform of the asylum law because the legal environment today in the European Union is inadequate to the threats posed by the policy of Russia and Belarus”, the PAP news agency reported.

On Friday, Poland's prime minister announced his country would upgrade its border wall with Belarus to prevent unauthorized immigration.

(aj)

SOURCE: AP, PAP