French President Emmanuel Macron has criticized plans by Germany and several other EU countries to send rejected asylum seekers to return hubs outside the European Union.
As far as France is concerned, the answer is “no to return centres,” he said. “I do not believe they are effective, nor that they are in line with our principles.”
The centres are intended to house individuals subject to enforceable removal orders who cannot be returned to their countries of origin – for example because their home country refuses to take them back.
The European Parliament recently approved the legal framework for the measure. The proposal now only requires the backing of EU member states.
Addressing countries seeking to establish such hubs, Macron said some governments had opted months, or even years, ago to pursue what he described as an "innovative" approach.
While he strongly supported innovation in many areas, he said he was far more cautious "when it comes to innovations in values and human rights."
Macron: ‘Return hubs’ do not align with European values
He does not believe that these plans would be in line with European values, Macron said. ‘I’m not sure that this is our Europe,’ he said, adding that he had never seen a return centre in a third country function successfully.
The French president also made clear that EU funds should not be used to finance the creation of such facilities.
At the same time, Macron reiterated his support for a firm migration policy aimed at tackling illegal immigration and increasing the number of returns.
France in the minority
Germany is one of the strongest supporters of the proposal and is advancing the initiative in a working group together with the Netherlands, Austria, Greece and Denmark.
According to German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt, concrete agreements with non-EU countries are expected to be reached this year.
Most other EU member states also back the idea, as reflected in a letter from Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
In the letter, the two leaders expressed support for so-called third-country solutions and called for financial assistance from the European Commission.
Nineteen of the EU's 27 member states signed the letter, which was published during the EU summit that concluded on Friday.
