Berlin and European Commission to cooperate more closely

Greece's Avramopoulos has known German Interior Minister Thomas de Maizière for a long time – from the days when both politicians served as defense ministers for their respective countries. Now, they are both responsible for home affairs, including migration and national security.

Refugee policy is a big issue for Germany and the EU, said de Maizière – one that doesn't just begin at the borders to Europe, but rather in the countries of origin and transit. For this reason, he said, the fact that the new EU commissioner is working with the interior ministers of member states on an integrated policy on refugees is a big step forward.

Avramopoulos is also maintaining contact with representatives of both the countries of origin and transit countries, a point he stressed in Rome last week at a meeting of interior ministers, which was also attended by ministers from several African countries. The meeting served to launch the Khartoum process ­­– a dialog with the East African countries from which many refugees originate or that serve as transit routes for asylum seekers en route to Europe. Those that oversee the reception centers in the transit countries are also part of the dialog.

De Maizière said that these centers could be equipped to process legal entry into the EU, thus stripping criminal traffickers of their source of income. The plan has been sharply criticized by refugee organizations. Günther Burkhardt, head of Pro Asyl, said the concept was nebulous and highly questionable. He argued that transit countries in North Africa have no legal provisions to guarantee the review of asylum applications.

Solidarity in dealing with refugees

De Maizière and Avramopoulos were in agreement that a common European refugee and asylum policy needs to be completely implemented by the member states. Part of that process is ensuring that refugees and asylum seekers who come to Europe are registered and distributed fairly. "Responsibility and solidarity go hand in hand," said Avramopoulos. He expressly praised Germany's willingness to accept refugees in critical situations, such as in Syria. De Maizière said that the current distribution of refugees within the EU does not reflect the legal situation, nor the principle of solidarity. That's why the ministers agreed to accept war refugees on a voluntary basis and to distribute them in a more timely manner than has been the case up to now.

Germany has "a special duty to accept asylum seekers, treat them properly here, and to decide quickly whether there are grounds for asylum or not," said de Maizière.

Avramopoulos praised German immigration policy. In 2013, Germany gave out more than 11,000 so-called Blue Cards to legal immigrants coming to the country to work. This should serve as an example to other EU states, he said, adding that Europe should support the immigration of skilled workers in a targeted fashion.

Fighting Jihadism together

The two politicians also promised greater cooperation in the fight against Jihadism. The "Islamic State" is not just any terrorist organization, said de Maizière. Events in Syria and Iraq are "a fundamental threat, not just for the region, of archaic brutality being perpetrated with the participation of Europeans posing a threat to Europe."

He said that it is intolerable that around 3,000 people from Europe are now fighting in the crisis zone. To prevent Jihadists from leaving Europe, or from re-entering the EU, the member states need to improve their cooperation along the EU's outer borders, he said. Avramopoulos said this could only be achieved through a better exchange of information. One example is a flight passenger database to track "foreign fighters" and other criminals. In addition, he said, checks on passengers within the Schengen area need to be stepped up, without restricting EU citizens' freedom of movement. Avramopoulos also called for better counter measures to stop the radicalization of young men and women. In this respect, he said he hopes to collaborate with Internet companies to counteract the kind of radicalization that typically happens via the Internet.