Karin Keller-Sutter, the Swiss justice minister, rejected suggestions that Swiss authorities let migrants cross borders into neighboring countries, which is prohibited by the Dublin agreement.
The statement follows the deputy leader of the German parliamentary group mentioning in the media that Switzerland allows asylum seekers to cross and reach their destinations, which are usually France and Germany, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
Andrea Lindholz, the deputy head, mentioned situations occurring on the eastern border of Switzerland, where around 1,000 migrants per week, mainly Afghan nationals, arrive in the country but will not seek asylum there. She also described this affair as “national selfishness which undermines the Schengen area”.
In contrast, Swiss Justice Minister Keller-Sutter said she had contacted Germany’s Interior Minister, who she said was a little surprised by the criticism noted in the Swiss press. As noted by Keller-Sutter, Germany and Switzerland continue to cooperate well and work together to combat irregular migration.
According to Dublin rules, the Schengen State responsible for processing an asylum application is the only country where migrants first arrive, where they must be registered and apply for asylum if they intend to do so. To do.
However, since 2015, when Europe experienced a migration crisis with more than a million refugees reaching the area, policymakers in Brussels have been determined to reform the process to reduce the heavy burden of claims on border states. such as Greece and Italy and to redistribute migrants. equally across Europe.
According to Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, the number of irregular border crossings reached 228,240 in the first nine months of 2022, the highest rate recorded since 2016.
The route most attacked by these illegalities has been the Western Balkans in recent months, registering a 170% increase compared to the previous year. A total of 106,396 border crossings were recorded on this route in the first nine months of the year, representing 46.6% of all arrivals to date.
Other routes that are seeing an increasing number of illegal border crossings include the central Mediterranean, with 65,752 detections, up 42% from 2021, and exits to the UK (52,720), which have increased by 68%.
According to Ukrainian nationals, Frontex reveals that more than 11 million of them have entered the EU since March, but that a significant number of them have also returned to their country of origin.
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