https://www.g20.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/G20-ROME-LEADERS-DECLARATION.pdf
https://it.euronews.com/2021/10/31/g20-ue-usa-fine-della-guerra-dei-dazi-seppelita-l-era-trump
https://www.agi.it/economia/news/2021-10-31/guerra-acciaio-finita-cadono-dazi-usa-ue-14392630/
https://www.edie.net/news/11/G20--What-was--and-wasn-t--agreed-by-world-leaders-on-the-eve-of-COP26/
Italy’s energy supplies
https://www.statista.com/statistics/787720/natural-gas-imports-by-country-of-origin-in-italy/
Economy
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Italy
https://data.oecd.org/italy.htm
https://tradingeconomics.com/italy/gdp-from-manufacturing
https://www.wantedinrome.com/news/italys-economy-set-to-recover-faster-than-expected.html
https://www.lewisdispensa.com/dispensa-intera-in-pdf.html
Some translation links with answers
(just click on the plus sign below each sentence or on 'show solutions') if you
are interested. Note that the first page has lots of other links at the bottom
of the same page:
http://www.englishgratis.com/1/risorse/esercizi/eg-ita1/722.htm
http://www.englishgratis.com/1/risorse/esercizi/eg-ita1/799.htm
and lots more at the bottom of that
page, e.g.
http://www.englishgratis.com/1/risorse/esercizi/eg-ita1/700.htm
then
https://ingliando.net/gym/etp-archive/
https://ingliando.net/gym/itp-archive/itp-1/
https://ingliando.net/2021/04/28/master-translator-exercise-17/
https://scuolatest.blogspot.com/2014/09/frasi-da-tradurre-dall-italiano-all.html
Here's
another possible subject for an essay:
'What are the challenges for companies
wishing to do business in Italy? What changes have been and could be made to
help them?'
https://www.doingbusiness.org/content/dam/doingBusiness/country/i/italy/ITA.pdf
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0s3MAK2DXhs
https://italian.doingbusiness.org/it/reports/subnational-reports/italy
https://tradingeconomics.com/italy/ease-of-doing-business
https://www.wolterskluwer.com/en/expert-insights/doing-business-in-italy
https://www.tmf-group.com/en/news-insights/business-culture/top-challenges-italy/
https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-investment-climate-statements/italy/
https://www.whitecase.com/insight-our-thinking/foreign-direct-investment-reviews-2023-italy
https://www.lloydsbanktrade.com/en/market-potential/italy/investment
https://www.ice.it/it/mercati/emirati-arabi-uniti/dubai/desk-attrazione-investimenti-esteri-italia
https://www.ceicdata.com/en/indicator/italy/foreign-direct-investment--of-nominal-gdp
http://tesi.luiss.it/31515/1/642092_LIVADIOTTI_LUCA.pdf
https://www.ice.it/en/invest/invest-italy
https://www.ansa.it/documents/1610403841219_Bozza_Recovery_01_Cover.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_received_FDI
https://www.ice.it/en/sites/default/files/inline-files/doing_business_english.pdf
https://undisciplinedenvironments.org/2015/02/16/sblocca-italia-extractivism-made-in-italy/
US
FDIs around the world and in Italy:
https://www.statista.com/statistics/188806/top-15-countries-for-united-states-direct-investments/
https://www.statista.com/statistics/188651/united-states-direct-investments-in-italy-since-2000/
China’s outflows of FDIs
https://www.ispionline.it/en/publication/italys-bri-dilemma-137315
In Italian and English for more translation (!) and an idea of the current situation. The Bulletin gets quite technical, so maybe just the opening overview and whatever else strikes you as interesting and useful linguistically.
https://www.bancaditalia.it/pubblicazioni/bollettino-economico/
https://www.bancaditalia.it/pubblicazioni/bollettino-economico/2021-4/index.html
https://www.bancaditalia.it/pubblicazioni/bollettino-economico/2021-4/boleco-4-2021.pdf
What is the situation in October 2021? Do some research!
The first
link below may be a good place to start
https://www.ispionline.it/it/pubblicazione/ispitel-fact-checking-migrazioni-2021-31027
https://www.statista.com/statistics/623514/migrant-arrivals-to-italy/
https://www.piuculture.it/2020/05/chi-sono-e-quanti-sono-gli-immigrati-irregolari-dati/
https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/STUD/2021/694413/IPOL_STU(2021)694413_EN.pdf
https://frontex.europa.eu/along-eu-borders/migratory-map/
(This takes about a minute to connect and download! Don’t give up!)
https://data2.unhcr.org/en/situations/mediterranean
https://www.ispionline.it/it/pubblicazione/migrazioni-nel-mediterraneo-tutti-i-numeri-24892
https://www.asylumineurope.org/reports/country/italy
https://www.ecfr.eu/specials/mapping_migration
https://data2.unhcr.org/en/situations/mediterranean/location/5205
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/11/14/5-facts-about-unauthorized-immigration-in-europe/
https://www.piuculture.it/2020/05/chi-sono-e-quanti-sono-gli-immigrati-irregolari-dati/
https://www.pewresearch.org/2019/11/15/video-estimating-europes-unauthorized-immigrant-population/
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/13/4m-unauthorised-immigrants-in-europe-in-2017-study
https://migrationdataportal.org/regional-data-overview/europe
https://migrationdataportal.org/data?i=stock_abs_&t=2019&cm49=380
https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/pdfscache/1275.pdf
https://www.globaldetentionproject.org/countries/europe/italy
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_to_Italy
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/11/14/5-facts-about-unauthorized-immigration-in-europe/
https://www.piuculture.it/2020/05/chi-sono-e-quanti-sono-gli-immigrati-irregolari-dati/
https://www.pewresearch.org/2019/11/15/video-estimating-europes-unauthorized-immigrant-population/
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/13/4m-unauthorised-immigrants-in-europe-in-2017-study
https://migrationdataportal.org/regional-data-overview/europe
https://migrationdataportal.org/data?i=stock_abs_&t=2019&cm49=380
https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/pdfscache/1275.pdf
https://www.globaldetentionproject.org/countries/europe/italy
https://www.globaldetentionproject.org/countries/europe/italy
https://www.ispionline.it/it/pubblicazione/migrazioni-italia-tutti-i-numeri-24893
https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/1_en_act_part1_v7_1.pdf
https://www.dw.com/en/opinion-eu-migration-pact-has-already-failed/a-55059684
http://data2.unhcr.org/en/situations/syria
https://africa-eu-partnership.org/en
https://africa-eu-partnership.org/en/strategic-priority-areas/migration-and-mobility
https://www.agi.it/estero/migranti_irregolari_clandestini_in_europa-6542965/news/2019-11-15/
https://www.piuculture.it/2020/05/chi-sono-e-quanti-sono-gli-immigrati-irregolari-dati/
https://www.repubblica.it/cronaca/2020/10/28/news/gli_effetti_del_covid_sui_migranti_-272056301/
https://www.lenius.it/sistema-di-accoglienza-dei-migranti-in-italia/
https://www.lenius.it/immigrati-a-roma/
https://www.amnesty.org/en/countries/europe-and-central-asia/italy/report-italy/
https://www.amnesty.it/memorandum-intesa-italia-libia-quarto-anniversario/
https://www.hrw.org/it/news/2020/02/12/338789
https://temi.camera.it/leg18/post/cpr.html
https://ilbolive.unipd.it/it/migranti-rimpatriati-italia-2019
General background, EU level
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2020/03/greece-turkey-refugees-explainer/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OfKemXSHY8
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/01/world/europe/greece-migrants-border-turkey.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZlSA-MT0Cc
https://ec.europa.eu/italy/node/1184_it
https://www.ispionline.it/it/pubblicazione/ue-turchia-e-migranti-verso-la-rottura-25409
https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/pdfscache/1275.pdf
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/03/which-countries-have-the-most-immigrants-51048ff1f9/
https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Glossary:Asylum_decision
https://www.sprar.it/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Sintesi_2017_eng.pdf
https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/it/MEMO_16_1494
https://apnews.com/article/2eb94ba9aee14272bd99909be2325e2b
https://www.dw.com/en/opinion-eu-turkey-need-each-other-and-a-new-refugee-deal/a-53131851
Italy, the current situation, the agreement with
Libya, questions about possible complicity in human rights violations there and
Italy's response, Italian emigration
https://www.lenius.it/stranieri-in-italia/
https://www.statewatch.org/media/documents/analyses/no-357-renewal-italy-libya-memorandum.pdf
https://www.ilpost.it/2018/06/12/dati-italia-immigrazione/
http://www.interno.gov.it/sites/default/files/cruscotto_giornaliero_11-10-2019.pdf
https://data2.unhcr.org/en/situations/mediterranean
https://www.ilsole24ore.com/art/missione-libia-maggioranza-governo-garanzie-diritti-umani-ADX5X7c
https://www.interno.gov.it/it/notizie/corridoi-umanitari-150-profughi-dai-centri-libici-italia
https://www.econopoly.ilsole24ore.com/2019/01/28/immigrazione-buonismo-demonizzazione/
https://www.repubblica.it/solidarieta/immigrazione/2019/07/03/news/migrazioni-230220063/
https://www.tuttitalia.it/statistiche/cittadini-stranieri-2019/
https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigrazione_in_Italia
https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2019/country-chapters/european-union
https://www.hrw.org/report/2019/01/21/no-escape-hell/eu-policies-contribute-abuse-migrants-libya
https://www.dw.com/en/eu-sued-by-human-rights-lawyers-over-migrant-deaths/a-49017259
https://www.globaldetentionproject.org/italy-complicit-in-grave-human-rights-abuse
https://www.avvenire.it/attualita/pagine/accordi-libia-ong-nuovi-divieti
http://espresso.repubblica.it/plus/articoli/2019/09/27/news/guardia-costiera-libia-1.339289
More
background - What happened in the crisis years and later developments
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-34131911 Excellent
summary of 2015 situation
and then
below for period from 2014 up to and including 2018
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-44660699
http://frontex.europa.eu/trends-and-routes/migratory-routes-map/
https://frontex.europa.eu/along-eu-borders/migratory-routes/western-mediterranean-route/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_migrant_crisis#Statistics
Description
of the scale of the phenomenon. Estimated number of illegal immigrants coming
into the EU in the recent past. More than a million illegal migrants and
refugees crossed into Europe in 2015, sparking a crisis as countries struggled
to cope with the influx, and creating division in the EU over how best to deal
with resettling people. The symbolic milestone was passed on 21 December 2015, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM)
said, with the total for land and sea reaching more than 1,006,000. The figure
covers entries via six European Union nations - Greece, Bulgaria, Italy, Spain,
Malta and Cyprus.
This compared
with 72,437 illegal immigrants to the EU in 2012, 107,365 in 2013 and 283,532 In
2014. However, 1,000,000 still represents only 0.2% of the EU’s population of
500 million.
The EU response
According to
Frontex this figure fell in 2016 to 503,700 detections of illegal border crossings.
This was mainly due to the EU/Turkey agreement, which came into effect in March
2016 and led to tighter border control by the Turkish authorities and readmission
of migrants from the Greek islands to Turkey.
The drop was
also influenced by tighter border controls in the Western Balkans. However, the number of detections on the Central
Mediterranean route (towards Italy) rose by nearly one-fifth to 181, 000, the
highest number ever recorded. This reflects a steadily increasing migratory pressure
from the African continent, particularly West Africa, which accounted for most
of the growth in 2016.
http://frontex.europa.eu/news/fewer-migrants-at-eu-borders-in-2016-HWnC1J
The overall
situation in 2017 showed a further drop in numbers, but arrivals by boat in Italy accounted for most of the figure:
119,310 in total, down by a third compared to the previous year, the Italian
Interior Ministry said on Dec 31.
EU document
on illegal migrants arriving in Italy up to July 2017:
https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-cant-solve-italy-migration-crisis-refugees-mediterranean-sea/
The Italian response
The Italian
Strategy in the Med - 2017
https://www.esteri.it/mae/resource/doc/2017/11/rapporto-med-maeci-2017-eng.pdf
and in 2018, the numbers remained low
https://reliefweb.int/topics/refugeesmigrants-emergency-europe
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2018/08/surging-death-toll-in-central-med/
https://data2.unhcr.org/en/situations/mediterranean
https://frontex.europa.eu/along-eu-borders/migratory-map/
failure to reform the Dublin rules
and tensions between the last Italian government (5 Stelle/Lega) and the EU and
within Italy
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jun/01/italy-vows-to-send-home-undocumented-immigrants
https://www.repubblica.it/politica/2018/09/10/news/onu_razzismo_italia-206054277/
https://www.repubblica.it/solidarieta/immigrazione/2018/07/31/news/migrazioni-203075373
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/12448/italy-illegal-migrants
2019
https://www.ilsole24ore.com/art/frontex-italia-sbarchi-migranti-minimi-2012-ABDpFIWB
https://www.camera.it/temiap/documentazione/temi/pdf/1105644.pdf?_1566573996938
A
draft agreement and problems
https://www.euronews.com/2019/09/23/five-eu-interior-ministers-agree-on-draft-migration-deal
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/sep/23/eu-nations-come-to-italys-aid-over-relocating-migrants
https://www.dw.com/en/eu-fails-to-cement-agreement-on-migrants-rescued-at-sea/a-50743383
and the new government in 2019
EU and
Italian developments and policy in 2017
http://www.foxnews.com/world/2017/06/29/eu-backs-more-support-for-italy-struggling-with-migrants.htmlhttp://www.politico.eu/article/libya-traffickers-migrants-mogherini-uno/ https://www.occrp.org/en/daily/4402-eu-approves-use-of-force-against-trafficking-boats-in-international-waters-2
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/04/23/italy-prosecutor-says-rescue-boats-contact-people-smugglers/
http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/italy-eu-rescue-boats-1.4184199
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/08/03/libyan-military-strongman-threatens-italian-ships-trying-stop/
and NGO rescue
boats:
http://www.dw.com/en/italy-draws-up-code-of-conduct-for-ngo-migrant-boat-rescues/a-39665763
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jun/28/italy-considers-closing-its-ports-to-ships-from-libya
In brief, there
was a significant rise in migration towards the EU in recent years, increasing
dramatically in 2014-17. Since then the numbers have fallen. Was this a temporary
phenomenon or is it a more permanent change? The result of turmoil in the
Middle East and North Africa or something more fundamental relating to economic
migration from poor and often war-torn countries in Africa, where most of the
migrants now come from?
Legal Immigration
to EU - Of course
we should remember that illegal immigration happens within a wider context of
legal immigration and both are important in examining popular reaction inside
EU member states. Figures for net legal immigration to the EU from
non-EU countries were 748,026 in 2010, 693,660 in 2011, 598,352 in 2012,
539,059 in 2013, suggesting a slight decline over that period. However, Frontex
estimates that there were already 547,335 people illegally present in the
EU in 2014. Many of these were from Syria, Eritrea and Afghanistan, with citizens
from these countries representing one third of the total.
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2015/554202/EPRS_BRI%282015%29554202_EN.pdf
Applications
for political asylum - The EU 28 received about 626,000 new applications
for political asylum from non-EU citizens in 2014 compared with 431,000 in
2013. This number rose to 1,260,000
in 2015 but fell slightly to 1,200,000
in 2016. (Germany’s share of the EU-28 total rose from 35% in 2015 to 60% in
2016) and then a large fall in 2017 to 712,000 and 638,000 in 2018.
https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Asylum_statistics
The number
of first-time asylum-seekers in the EU-28 has also decreased since 2016.
The EU Member
States granted protection status to 710,400 asylum seekers in 2016, more
than double the number in 2015.
This also fell to 300,000 in 2018
So for Italy the huge illegal
migration crisis which overstretched Italian reception facilities and resources
in 2015-17 is over for the moment.
https://www.interno.gov.it/sites/default/files/2020-10/cruscotto_giornaliero_23-10-2020.pdf
The humanitarian crisis is now in the
detention centres in Libya. And this raises the question of complicity in human
rights violations.
At the same time, internal EU migration from poorer (e.g. Romania) to richer countries, has already produced some serious frictions that may add to tensions between migrants of all kinds and native residents. Xenophobic reactions take various forms. There are accusation that foreigners steal local jobs at a time of recession and obtain welfare payments that they have not contributed to in taxes. Statistically, this seems largely a false impression as foreigners often do jobs that the local population does not want to do and often fail to claim welfare benefits to which they are entitled. However, these concerns about internal EU migration could be dwarfed by non-EU immigration in terms of scale, duration and the social tensions produced if numbers rose dramatically because of a worsening political situation or as a result of climate change.
Another
concern is crime:
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-germany-crime-idUSKBN17Q1G4
What problems is the EU facing as a
result of illegal migration?
The humanitarian crisis – the
situation of migrants who are trying to get here. Human smuggling (and
trafficking), massive human rights violation and the responsibility to respond
to this crisis. Deaths at sea and human rights violations in detention centres
in libya and Turkey.Behind this there is the the challenge of dealing with migant
trafficking across Africa and inside
Libya.
Structures - The rising numbers were often
said to be beyond the capacity and funding of existing infrastructure (e.g.
reception centres) and personnel (e.g. coast guard, police, frontier and
migration authorities, interviewers interpreters etc…) and the procedures to deal
with the migrants (identification, interviewing, temporary accommodation,
repatriation if not accepted and more permanent relocation, accommodation and
integration if accepted).
Tensions between EU member states -
Migrants coming into the EU often cross internal EU borders to move to their
preferred destination (often in Northern Europe). This creates tensions between
EU member states and has led to growing restrictions by states on free movement
within the EU and thus an erosion of the
Schengen rules.
gees-arrive-170729121908166.html
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/mar/09/balkans-refugee-route-closed-say-european-leaders
http://www.aljazeera.com/video/news/2017/07/police-set-checkpoints-france-italy-border-refu
Countries on front-line EU external
borders (although obviously in a certain sense all countries with ports
airports and container ports are on the front line.) e.g. Italy, Greece, Spain,
Romania, Bulgaria etc.. have been criticized
for not securing their borders by providing effective controls against illegal
immigration. This criticism has come from destination countries like Germany, the
UK, France, and Scandinavia. These countries, in their turn, are criticized by
the countries on the exposed external EU borders for failing to provide
adequate economic and material assistance to their partners to help them deal
with the problem. For example, Operazione Mare Nostrum in 2013-14, financed at
significant expense (9 million euros a month for 12 months) and almost
exclusively by Italy, was relatively successful compared with the EU Operation Triton (originally called
Frontex Plus) and at first financed at only 3 million euros a month (although
it later received €120 million for 2015-2016). Operation Triton was replaced by
Operation Themis
in February 2018. Mare Nostrum operated also in international
waters, Triton‘s mission only covered border control and activity within 30 miles
off the Italian coast. However, the European
Union Naval Force Mediterranean
also known as Operation Sophia made the situation more manageable in
international waters.
https://eeas.europa.eu/headquarters/headquarters-homepage_en/19163/EU-Libya%20relations
https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operazione_Triton
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EU_Navfor_Med
https://www.difesa.it/OperazioniMilitari/op_intern_corso/eunavfor_med/Pagine/default.aspx
http://eeas.europa.eu/csdp/missions-and-operations/eunavfor-med/index_en.htm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EU_Navfor_Med
http://www.un.org/press/en/2015/sc12072.doc.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Sophia
https://www.operationsophia.eu/
https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operazione_Themis
However, real doubts and criticisms about
the effectiveness of Operations Themis and Sophia remain. Instead of deterring
migration, critics say it simply confines it to Libya, creating a growing
humanitarian crisis in the detention centres. While its search and rescue
activities have saved lives, does its destruction of boats lead smugglers to
put migrants into even less seaworthy vessels? See below #
The Dublin Regulation - This gives
primary responsibility for processing asylum applications to the country of
arrival. Italy and other front-line countries have called for a revision of the
Regulation and asked other EU member states to open their ports to migrants.
While the EU in July 2017 recognized the enormous challenge facing Italy and
agreed to provide more funds, no further progress was made reform to the Dublin
Regulation. In July 2017, the European Court of Justice upheld the Dublin
Regulation declaring it still stands despite the high influx of 2015, giving EU
member states the right to deport migrants to the first country of entry to the
EU. Also in July EU interior ministers refused to support an Italian proposal
to open up European ports to ships carrying migrants. In June 2018 a deal was
agreed but was heavily criticized as ineffective because it was voluntary and
did not include a comprehensive revision of the
Dublin Regulation
https://www.esteri.it/mae/en/sala_stampa/interviste/2017/08/giro-dobbiamo-riformare-dublino.html
http://www.euronews.com/2017/07/06/eu-rejects-italian-request-to-open-ports-to-migrants
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dublin_Regulation
http://www.euronews.com/2017/07/04/eu-unveils-migration-action-plan-for-italy
Read
these updates about the relocation scheme carefully
http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEMO-17-349_en.htm
http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-17-1302_en.htm
https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2018-07-04/europe-s-migration-deal-is-a-failure
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/sep/23/eu-nations-come-to-italys-aid-over-relocating-migrants
Public opinion in many EU countries – In
2014-15 there was initially a wave of real sympathy for the plight of the
migrants on their journey, outrage at their inhuman exploitation by traffickers
and smugglers and horror at their sometimes gruesome fate. This was expressed
in the generous reaction of governments, NGOs and the public.
At the same
time there was growing concern among EU citizens about the rise in immigrant
numbers, increasing opposition to this process, fears about cultural clashes,
growing numbers of acts of violence against immigrants and refugee centers and
a significant rise in support for xenophobic, or at least more nationalist, political
parties. This played an important part in the elections in Italy in March 2018.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-33700624
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-43291390
Criticism of
the EU itself – The EU is often blamed and held responsible for the rise in migrant
numbers. Calls for withdrawal from the EU have also increased, though it is hard
to see how leaving the EU would benefit a country in terms of dealing with
illegal non-EU immigration.
e.g.
in the Brexit vote Lord Ashcroft's mega-poll of 12,369 voters after the referendum found that one third
of Leave voters chose to back Brexit as they saw it "offered the best
chance for the UK to regain control over immigration and its own borders."
This was the second biggest motivation for Leave voters, just behind “the principle
that decisions about the UK should be taken in the UK”.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/06/29/did-britain-really-vote-brexit-to-cut-immigration/
In October 2016 Hungary held a referendum on whether to comply with the European Union quota system aimed at
solving the migrant crisis, setting the stage for a fresh fight over power-sharing
in the 28-nation bloc. Hungarians voted to reject the European Union refugee
resettlement plan, but failed to turn out in sufficient numbers to make the
referendum legally binding. The Hungarian referendum worried some in Brussels,
who fear that a series of national votes on specific
issues could unfasten key components of EU policy and rules. Senior EU
officials have worried that further referendums, above all on a country’s EU membership,
could lead to an eventual unraveling of the bloc.
In addition
to the June 23, 2016 British referendum, Dutch voters also rejected a sweeping EU trade and political agreement with Ukraine in April,
http://edition.cnn.com/2016/10/02/europe/hungary-migrant-referendum/index.html
In
March 2016, President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker stated
that it would take at least 20–25 years for Ukraine to join the EU and NATO.[205] In
June 2018, President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko said
he expected Ukraine will
join both the European Union and
the North Atlantic
Treaty Organisation by
2030.
Other
countries (e.g. In Eastern Europe) continue to support membership of the EU but
seem determined to oppose the EU redistribution quota system for migrants or
other openings of this type from within the EU. (The EU Resettlement and
Relocation schemes of 2015 envisaged a possible 160,000 resettlements).
The
numbers in this pdf may seem small but only about 35,000 applicationshave been
granted.)
There
are fears that a failure to agree an effective resettlement scheme could weakem
EU unity, cooperation and effectiveness. However, the victory of pro-EU
Emmanuel Macron inthe May 2017 French Presidential election boosted hopes for
increased EU cooperation. The Italian election results, however, refocused
attention on the lack of agreement on migration.
Terrorism - With the
terrorist attacks in Paris on November 13th 2015 (and further
attacks through 2016 and 2017), there is growing public concern that Arab
terrorists may manage to get into Europe by pretending to be refugees. There is
also concern about border security regarding European citizens who sympathize
with ISIS and go to Syria possibly to train and try to return to Europe to
carry out an attack.
g) The reaction of the EU is often
criticized as slow and lacking coordination while EU member states are
criticized as too preoccupied with their own national interests. The atmosphere
at the EU talks to agree and introduce the quota system among members to deal
with the ongoing crisis was an example of these problems.
For the plan see and reactions see: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-34193568
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-europe-migrants-eu-idUSKCN0RM10A20150922
https://www.yahoo.com/news/migrants-inundate-eu-crisis-hotspot-croatia-030939642.html
http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-europe-migrants-juncker-idUKKCN0QT0O720150824
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/09/22/us-europe-migrants-eu-idUSKCN0RM10A20150922
The debate at the start of 2016 about
whether or not to suspend the Schengen agreement for 2 years was also an
indication of the strong feelings involved, as was Austria's decision to
temporarily suspend it in January 2016. This has now happened in several EU
Schengen area member states (France, Germany, Austria, Denmark, Sweden and
Norway):
http://www.politico.eu/article/austria-suspends-schengen-border-checks-eu-migrants/
Current situation - https://ec.europa.eu/home-affairs/what-we-do/policies/borders-and-visas/schengen/reintroduction-border-control_en
h) the EU-
Turkey deal on refugees and migrants in 2016. This vastly reduced migration
pressure through the Balkans and into Greece but increased pressure on Italy.
There are also criticisms from human rights groups about conditions for
migrants in both Greek and Turkish camps and EU complicity in this situation.
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2017/03/the-eu-turkey-deal-europes-year-of-shame/
http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEMO-16-963_it.htm
http://www.migrationpolicy.org/news/paradox-eu-turkey-refugee-deal
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-36121083
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/apr/20/eu-refugee-deal-turkey-condemned-council-of-europe
What are the problems for the future?
a) Beyond the continuing human rights
crisis there is the question of whether the scale of the phenomenon is
temporary, e.g. due to refugees from the civil war in Syria and the situation
in Libya, or part of a growing trend towards movement from non-EU states to the
EU based on hopes for greater economic well-being and more security and freedom
(e.g. from Africa and even Bangladesh).
b) The
need to quickly and effectively integrate into society those migrants who are
allowed to stay. Many experts argue that many states in the EU with aging
populations need migrants as a young and flexible workforce. Others point to
the failures in previous integration policies.
http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/home-affairs/what-we-do/policies/legal-migration/index_en.htm
http://www.oecd.org/els/mig/Indicators-of-Immigrant-Integration-2015.pdf
c)There is a need to support efforts for
pacification and peace-building in the war-torn areas from which the refugees
are fleeing. Current efforts (see below) to form a single effective government
in Libya and enforce the rule of law by reaching an agreement between all
legitimate groups are crucial in any attempt to limit the spread of ISIS and
deal with the humanitarian and refugee crisis in Libya at its source.
https://www.esteri.it/mae/resource/doc/2015/06/non_paper.pdf
https://www.esteri.it/mae/resource/doc/2017/07/06.07_joint_declaration.pdf
http://www.ecfr.eu/article/commentary_the_libyan_context_of_the_migration_crisis3040
https://www.hrw.org/news/2016/07/06/eu/nato-europes-plan-endangers-foreigners-libya
See also
below #
d) There is also a need to provide more
funds to UN agencies and NGOs in countries like Syria’s neighbors, Lebanon,
Jordan and Turkey, which are trying to deal with the enormous refugee problem.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-34344346
e)
Whatever public resentment there may be about perceived threats to jobs, at a
time of recession and unemployment, and the nation’s ‘culture’, immigrant
numbers remain a limited proportion of the population. It is only in certain
areas with sudden, high immigrant concentrations that a community may feel
overwhelmed and this calls, above all, for better planning and organization in
the redistribution of recently arrived migrants.
f) Although most of the EU economies are
either just coming out of recession or growing only slowly, the EU’s population
generally is aging and young migrants may play an important and necessary role
in the economy in the recovery.
g)
The migrant challenge is unlikely to go away soon. So the EU and national
governments will have to respond to public concerns about immigration while at
the same time honoring their legal and moral obligations to deal with the question
by providing better-coordinated, better-funded plans on a long-term basis. So
far this has not happened.
h)
How to deal with asylum seekers who are successful in their application (where
should they reside?) and those who are not (repatriation). Indeed, repatriation
now seems to be one of the main challenges for the current Italian government
as it was for the last.
https://www.today.it/politica/migranti-decreto-rimpatri.html
See
below § Dealing with asylum seekers
i) The
idea and effectiveness of using military force against the human traffickers.
j) The
question of how to protect the Schengen agreement.
http://www.dw.com/en/opinion-military-force-against-human-traffickers/a-18535119
k) the deal
with Turkey and questions about human rights and whether it is legal
http://www.migrationpolicy.org/news/paradox-eu-turkey-refugee-deal
http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEMO-16-963_it.htm
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/apr/20/eu-refugee-deal-turkey-condemned-council-of-europe
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/aug/25/eu-and-turkey-restart-talks-over-migrant-pact
http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEMO-16-3218_en.htm
and in the
light of the crack-down after the attempted coup
l)
agreements between Italy, the EU and Libya's fragile government aimed at
containing migration from Libya to Italy and attempts to encourage the
formation of a unity government there.
http://www.politico.eu/article/eu-raises-pressure-for-unified-government-in-libya-khalifa-haftar/
m) The question of identity – beyond
fears about whether migrants from outside Europe
and even from
some areas of Eastern Europe represent an economic threat to jobs and pay
levels, a burden on welfare systems or pose threats to security in terms of
crime and terrorism, there is the question of whether they are seen as an
existential threat to the Italian and Western European way of life. The numbers
of migrants arriving in Italy have fallen, the fears have not. To what extent can
migrants learn to be Europeans in terms of thinking and identity? Can Europeans
live with multiculturalism?
More background reading
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_to_Europe
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_migrant_crisis#2016
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_migrant_crisis
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-34193568
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_migrant_crisis
http://www.euractiv.com/sections/global-europe/immigrant-crisis-causes-outcry-europe-316816
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/e/european_union/index.html
http://www.economist.com/blogs/economist-explains/2015/05/economist-explains-6
http://cadmus.eui.eu/bitstream/handle/1814/35557/MPC_2015_05_PB.pdf?sequence=1
See above#
http://www.msf.org/en/article/libya-open-letter-european-governments-are-feeding-business-suffering
https://www.hrw.org/middle-east/n-africa/libya
There is also the possibility of a new route:
http://www.sardiniapost.it/cronaca/migranti-oltre-seimila-profughi-ospitati-sardegna/
Poland
Human rights of refugees and migrants in Libya and Turkey:
https://www.avvenire.it/attualita/pagine/rinnovato-memorandum-italia-libia
https://sea-watch.org/en/legal-action-against-italy-over-its-coordination-of-libyan-coast-guard/
https://www.avvenire.it/attualita/pagine/onu-avvisa-italia-e-ue-stop-complicita-in-libia
https://www.hrw.org/it/report/2019/01/21/326624
https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/07/26/turkey-forcibly-returning-syrians-danger
https://www.thelocal.it/20181122/un-italy-anti-migrant-decree-climate-of-hatred
And perhaps simply of interest? Some Europeans migrant groups
old https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2012/jan/26/europe-population-who-lives-where
https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anagrafe_degli_italiani_residenti_all%27estero
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