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DE RUEHBS #1538/01 2751533
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R 011533Z OCT 08
FM USEU BRUSSELS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BRUSSELS 001538 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: CVIS PREL PREF SMIG KCRM EUN
SUBJECT: EU-27 AGREE ON IMMIGRATION AND ASYLUM PACT; DEAL NEAR ON 
-EU BLUE CARD- 
 
REF: USEU BRUSSELS 1165 
 
SUMMARY 
------- 
 
¶1.  EU ministers in the September 25 Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) 
Council agreed on a European Pact on Immigration and Asylum to be 
endorsed by EU leaders at their mid-October European Council 
meeting.  The Pact sets out principles to manage legal migration 
based on labor market needs of the individual EU countries, to 
combat illegal immigration, and to make border controls more 
effective, while developing a common EU asylum policy and promoting 
partnership with countries of origin and transit.  Ministers also 
came very close to agreement on the EU "blue card" scheme setting 
conditions of entry and residency of non-EU nationals to attract 
highly qualified employees.  The Czech Republic, however, is holding 
up a deal until its own workers are given access to all EU 
countries.  The Commission will conduct a mission to Syria and 
Jordan in liaison with the UNHCR to assess the situation of the most 
vulnerable Iraqi refugees in those countries and to examine the 
scope of their possible resettlement in EU countries that might be 
prepared to accept them.  Full text of the Council conclusions will 
be published on the EU Council website (http://consilium.europa.eu). 
 
 
IMMIGRATION AND ASYLUM PACT 
--------------------------- 
 
¶2.  French Immigration and Integration Minister Brice Hortefeux told 
a press conference the Council recorded its "complete agreement" on 
the text of the European Pact on Immigration and Asylum, which is 
expected to be endorsed by EU leaders at their October 15-16 
European Council meeting.  The Pact - a political document with no 
immediate, concrete binding effect - has been negotiated by the EU 
Member State governments over the past few months, based on a draft 
tabled by the French Presidency, which made it one of the top 
priorities of its six-month term.  As already reported (see REFTEL 
and copy - in draft - of the Pact circulated to ERA in July), the 
Pact centers around key commitments to be fulfilled by national and 
EU bodies.  It sets out principles to manage legal migration on the 
basis of the labor market needs of the individual EU countries, to 
combat illegal immigration, to make border controls more effective, 
to develop a common EU asylum policy, and to promote a comprehensive 
partnership with countries of origin and transit. 
 
¶3.  A very satisfied Hortefeux said the Pact was adopted by 
unanimous backing and much praise from his colleagues.  He noted 
that "political differences and geographical disparities" among the 
EU-27 were "not obstacles" to consensus.  Joining Hortefeux at the 
press conference, Swedish Immigration Minister Tobias Billstrm was 
pleased that "the preamble of the text confirms the positive effects 
of migration."  Billstrm also said: "It is our responsibility not 
to weaken the values on which the EU is based, including solidarity 
- among Member states and with entrants."  Spanish Immigration 
Minister Celestino Corbacho told reporters the Pact was "a great 
step forward," saying it had "the great virtue of allowing countries 
some leeway" in the management of migrants and conduct of policy. 
¶4.  In other side-comments to media, delegations drew attention to 
the joint commitment to avoid granting residency permits "en masse." 
(Note:  Mass regularizations decided by the (previous) Spanish and 
Italian governments had been fiercely criticized by EU partners over 
recent years, including by Germany and then French Interior Minister 
Nicolas Sarkozy.  End note).  UK Minister of State for Borders and 
Immigration Liam Byrne said: "Getting a clear statement against mass 
regularizations is a very important line in the sand."  Byrne said 
the "trick now" was "to turn ideas into action," saying he would 
visit Paris next week to talk about ways to rapidly implement parts 
of the pact, including joint returns of illegal migrants.  Maltese 
officials said the Pact was helpful to address "disproportionate 
pressures" they had to cope with as a country particularly exposed 
to the influx of migrants. 
¶5.  COMMENT.  The adoption of the Pact was one of the key goals of 
the French Presidency.  The final product appears to be well 
balanced.  The French displayed flexibility over the past few months 
to rally delegations around their proposal and to take account of 
their partners' sensitivities.  Hortefeux rightly claimed that the 
document avoids two potential pitfalls: "the creation of a European 
fortress, and total opening up to illegal immigration."  But the 
real value of Pact, which will likely serve as a reference document 
for the years to come, remains to be demonstrated by concrete 
measures, for which the document often leaves responsibility to the 
EU Member States.  As an illustration, the Pact calls for the EU to 
accept more highly skilled workers to its territory (see below), 
while leaving it to governments to decide who and how many should be 
admitted.  A recent study by a Brussels-based think tank found 
little evidence that the mutual recognition of expulsion decisions 
is being implemented by the EU governments.  The Pact also calls on 
Member States to improve the effectiveness of controls on the EU's 
external borders but the FRONTEX agency remains in lack of resources 
 
BRUSSELS 00001538  002 OF 003 
 
 
and equipment. 
 
EU BLUE CARD 
------------ 
 
¶6.  Minister Hortefeux said the Council recorded a "quasi-agreement" 
on the draft Directive setting conditions of entry and residence of 
non-EU nationals for the purpose of highly-qualified employment. 
This proposal was tabled by the Commission with the aim of 
introducing a flexible, fast-track common procedure for the 
admission of skilled migrants into EU territory.  In the words of a 
senior Presidency official, this EU "blue card" would strengthen the 
EU's competitiveness in a global environment "in which Europe is 
only one possible destination among others, including North 
America."  Hortefeux denied that the plan would encourage a brain 
drain, particularly from Africa. "The principle is to encourage the 
mobility of skills," he said. 
 
¶7.  As it stands, the plan has been watered down from the original 
proposal tabled by former Commission Vice-President Frattini a year 
ago and will not allow recipients to move around as freely as 
initially envisaged.  Hortefeux told his press conference that the 
"200 reservations" voiced when the proposal was proposed had been 
reduced to just one outstanding issue, raised by the Czech Republic 
for "domestic reasons."  Hortefeux hinted that Czech Interior 
Minister Ivan Langer did not want to commit his 
government/parliament on the date of application of the Directive. 
EU sources explained that the Czechs do not want the scheme to be 
applied before the lifting of outstanding restrictions to the free 
movement of workers within the EU (Germany and Austria already made 
it clear they would make use of the ability to retain curbs on labor 
from the 2005 EU entrants until 2011).  The EP has still to 
pronounce on this proposal, on which the French hope to record final 
agreement by the year's end. 
 
¶8.  Member States have been negotiating on the criteria for access 
by non-EU nationals, including the pay level.  Hortefeux said the 
Council agreed on a proposal from the Presidency to set a threshold 
corresponding to 1.5 times the level of the average salary, based on 
calculations for each Member State. A provision would allow 
individual Member States to lower the threshold to 1.2 times the 
average salary for some job categories.  French officials said the 
formula enabled them to counter critics, who had argued that the 
plan would lead to some EU harmonization of salaries. 
 
¶9.  Some observers question whether the EU "Blue Card" will work, 
noting that the plan would only offer access to one Member State at 
a time, thus limiting the opportunities available to potential 
migrants.  German Interior Minister Wolfgang Scha|ble said 
expectations of the EU "Blue Card" had "always been exaggerated," 
stressing: "The Member States have the responsibility for the job 
markets and the Blue Card will not change that. It shouldn't 
either." 
 
RESETTLEMENT OF IRAQI REFUGEES 
------------------------------ 
 
¶10.  The Council recalled its conclusions of July 24 on the 
situation of Iraqi refugees, both in the EU Member States and the 
neighboring countries (REFTEL).  While noting that some Member 
States already welcome Iraqi refugees within the framework of 
national resettlement programs, those conclusions said the priority 
was to create conditions allowing Iraqi refugees to go back home and 
included no call for Member States to take in more refugees.  The 
September 25 Council noted the Commission's plan to conduct a 
mission in Syria and Jordan in liaison with the UNHCR "to assess the 
situation of the most vulnerable refugees in those countries and to 
look at possibilities of resettlement in voluntary (EU) Member 
States."  Commission Vice-President Jacques Barrot, who holds 
responsibility for Justice, Freedom and Security, said the mission 
would take place at the beginning of November to "identify the most 
vulnerable groups, the return of which to Iraq is out of the 
question." 
 
¶11.  Council chair Hortefeux said EU governments would decide after 
that mission how many Iraqis they could take in for resettlement. 
While refusing to mention the country by name, Hortefeux hinted that 
Germany gave indications to the Council it might be prepared to take 
in "five to ten thousand" (refugees).  Interior Minister Scha|ble 
separately told German reporters: "We must not counter the efforts 
of Iraq to bring refugees home, but a small proportion of refugees 
for whom returning would be impossible will remain (a problem). 
That's specifically true for minorities." (Note:  Germany pressed 
its EU partners earlier this year to take in more Iraqi Christian 
refugees, arguing they were particularly exposed to violence.  Other 
Member States, including previous Presidency Slovenia, objected that 
giving priority to Christians would amount to discrimination 
vis-`-vis other groups.  End note). 
 
 
BRUSSELS 00001538  003 OF 003 
 
 
 
IMPACT OF ECJ RULING 
-------------------- 
 
¶12.  Per Denmark's request, the ministers addressed questions raised 
by the ECJ ruling referred to as the "Metock case" (C-127-08) that 
concerns the rights of EU citizens and family members to move and 
reside freely within the EU.  The Court ruled that in the case of a 
married couple, where one of the spouses is an EU citizen and the 
other a national of a non-member country, the non-EU spouse may 
reside with the EU citizen without having previously been legally 
resident in another Member State, irrespective of when and where the 
marriage took place and how the non-EU national entered the host 
Member State.  Denmark fears the ruling could encourage migrants to 
enter the EU by having recourse to false marriages.  Commission 
Vice-President Barrot said the Commission would assess possible 
repercussions of the ruling in the context of a report to be 
submitted at the year's end on the implementation of the 2004 EU 
"Family Reunification" Directive.  Barrot said this could involve 
drawing up guidelines on ways of implementing the Directive.  He 
noted that the current text of the EU legislation already provides 
for Member States to take measures against abuses, including false 
marriages. 
 
MURRAY