Earlier this week, Polish PM Donald Tusk assured that the EU Migration Pact approved by the European Parliament will not apply to Poland.

Given that “the political make-up of the European Parliament may also change a bit” in the coming months, he insisted that European leaders woul “get back to this topic”. 

BREAKING:

Polish Prime Minister @DonaldTusk announces that Poland won’t follow the the new migrant relocation mechanism

The PM made the statement in response to the European Parliament’s decision to today pass the EU’s new Migration & Asylum Pact with its migrant quota clause pic.twitter.com/QHekJaahN7

— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) April 10, 2024

Nevertheless, Tusk was unwavering that the migration regulations won’t affect Poland and that his government will discover „methods to shield Poland from the relocation mechanism, even if this Pact is enacted in more or less the same form as it was voted on in Parliament.„

He will need to leverage all his influence within the EU to have any hope of altering the Pact, which will proceed to a vote in the Council of the EU on 29 April where it will only require a qualified majority in favour as Member States’ vetoes won’t apply.

Upon formal approval of the package by the Council, the regulations will become effective upon their publication in the Official Journal, the EU’s official gazette. Regarding the directive on the conditions for the reception of immigrants, Member States will have two years to enact changes in national law.

https://twitter.com/RMXnews/status/1778369288954425350

Tusk will also be mindful that one of the parties in his ruling coalition, The Left, backs the Migration Pact and its six MEPs either voted in favour or abstained on the measure during Wednesday’s vote. 

The Polish PM also hopes that the pressure Poland faces on the border with Belarus and the potential for a new wave of refugees from Ukraine, as well as all the Ukrainian refugees the country has already absorbed, will be enough to ensure that Poland is not expected to receive more and neither will it be charged for not doing so.

A Member State’s ability to opt out from Migration Pact regulations requires a European Commission recommendation.

The EU Migration Pact, formally titled the Pact on Migration and Asylum, is a collection of proposed regulations and policies purportedly aimed at tackling migration and asylum concerns within the EU. It was introduced by the European Commission in September 2020.

The Pact is presented by its supporters as a sweeping strategy for managing migration and asylum movements across EU member states. Its critics believe that its adoption will aggravate the issue of human smuggling and trafficking and lead to increasing insecurity across Europe. 

Image: TVP

Author: Sébastien Meuwissen