ČRo Radiožurnál | Can we expect a significant shift in the EU's migration policy from the Brussels summit?

The EU Summit started in Brussels this morning and one of its key points is to be further assistance for Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelensky is in attendance and has presented a "victory plan" which includes strengthening Ukraine's military capabilities. A particularly heated discussion is expected around adjustments to EU migration and asylum policy. Shortly before the start of the summit, representatives of several countries, including the Czech Republic, were due to hold an emergency meeting to reconcile their positions in this area. Viktor Daněk, deputy director of EUROPEUM Institute, commented on the current events on Czech Radio broadcast.

In the interim before the migration pact comes into force, it appears that Europe still has deep problems that need to be addressed urgently, which is why some countries are calling for the implementation of the migration pact to be accelerated. The fact that Germany has resumed border controls, that Poland wants to stop processing asylum applications, that Finland is already doing something similar, that the Netherlands and Hungary want a permanent exemption from asylum and migration policy, this is very unpleasant news that the European Commission must address now and cannot wait for the migration pact to come into force.

You can listen to the full commentary here from 12:10.

Viktor Daněk
Deputy Director

Before entering the NGO sphere, Viktor Daněk worked for almost ten years as a journalist. During his time with the public service Czech radio, he focused mainly on covering EU affairs. He spent almost five years as a permanent correspondent in Brussels, where he cooperated with other media outlets. Before his career in journalism, he gained experience in the area of marketing and communication in the Česká spořitelna banking group and at the Czech Technical University in Prague. He holds university degrees in Media Studies and International Relations. Viktor Daněk joined the EUROPEUM Institute for European Policy in October 2023. He continues to be active in the media as a freelancer. His main areas of interest are institutional questions of European integration, globalisation and the EU’s climate and migration policy.