Islamabad, EU agree to revise migrant treaty

Officials to meet again in Brussels in January next year

ISLAMABAD:

After extensive closed-door meetings, Pakistan and the European Union (EU) have agreed to rewrite the recently suspended accord for readmission of illegal migrants.

The decision was taken in the wake of Islamabad’s concerns over irregularities in the implementation of the readmission agreement.



The deal signed between Pakistan and the EU in 2009 allows European countries to repatriate Pakistani illegal immigrants, and even of other nationalities who travelled through Pakistan on their way to Europe.

The deliberations between Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan and EU Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship Dimitris Avramopoulos took place on Monday.

The interior ministry said the joint readmission committee agreed to resolve the concerns identified by Islamabad in the accord due to which it was suspended recently. The meeting will be held in Brussels on January 12 next year.





During Monday’s meeting, both sides agreed to work together to find solutions to ‘technical problems’ in the agreement, stated an interior ministry press release issued on Tuesday.

“Pakistan and EU will enhance cooperation to manage current migration and security issues in order to take strong action together to tackle the migration challenges,” the ministry said.

Officials said the EU’s broader engagement with Pakistan, including legal migration and mobility, and its engagement to support Pakistan in the context of the Silk Route partnership, were also discussed.



The official handout welcomed the opening of two migration information centres in Islamabad and Lahore and the future deployment of a European migration liaison officer. The two sides said the electronic platform would enhance the transparent processing of readmission applications.

EU Commissioner Avramopoulos also announced the European commission will set up funding to support the reintegration of Pakistani migrants sent back from the EU. The European Commission will also provide funding for targeted projects on preventing and countering migrant smuggling in Pakistan.

An interior ministry official said both parties undertook commitment to continue working closely together on priorities in the future, especially against emerging threats of terrorist groups and cooperation against drugs.



Some European leaders are calling for tighter immigration controls in the wake of the Paris attacks, which killed 130 people and wounded about 200.

“We had friendly, frank and positive discussions with the Pakistani interior minister. And I think after the talks today… everything is back to normal,” Avramopoulos told reporters after the meeting on Monday.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 25^th, 2015.