EPP Head Daul urges EU External Borders Control. Otherwise EU Hostage to Turkey for Time being

*Strasbourg/Angelo Marcopolo/-Speaking at a Side Event shortly after EU Parliament's critical Debate this Morning, experienced President of EU ChristianDemocrat/EPP Parties, and former long-time Chairman of EPP MEP's Group at EUP, Joseph Daul, practicaly replied Positively in a Topical Question raised by "EuroFora" at a short meeting before his Speech, (for which he had twie asked some clarifiations), by stressing from the outset that he hopes  Heads of State/GoeRnment, at next Thursday Summit in Brussels, would "Adopt Decisions on EU External Borders' Control" to master the Mass Migration Crisis comming from Turkey.

- Otherwise, "EU currently, is, indeed, a Hostage of Turkey", (as, f.ex., mainstream Polish Newspaper ""gazeta wyborcza" wrote in its Headlines), Daul acknowledged, when Francis Kern, vice-President of Strasbourg University for International Relations, (whose European Doctoral School had co-organized the event, together with the European Movement which invited "Eurofora"), criticaly asked why EU, instead of risking to make some controversial compromises with a notoriously oppressive Turkish regime, doesn't, on the contrary, raise the Flag of Democracy end Human Rights, considering also the GeoPolitical Fact that, Today, it wasn't so much EU which needed Turkey, but Turkey who needed the EU, as it was surrounded by Russia and Iran.

- "Erdogan is Not Easy", and more could be said at the right Time, but it's also true that, on the current Migration Crisis, Europe is Hostage of Turkey, "for the Time being", pointed out Daul, i.e. until EU Leaders adopt a set of Measures to Complete Schengen by the Protection of EU External Borders. (On the obvious Condition that they are not limited only to ...1 EU CoastGuard for 66 Km of Coastline from 2020, as a Draft notes, neither postpone for after Summer season the moment when EU CoastGuard would become fully functional).

On the contrary, I appreciate what Lebanon and Jordany are doing (for Syrian Refugees), in proportion of their Population, and I regret that nobody speaks about them, Daul pointed out.     

   
But, concerning the "Hot" issue of the last-minute, unexpected Turkish further desiderata, notioriously presented just a few Hours before the latest EU  Turkey Summit in Brussels, and on which EU Leaders are due to decide at their forthcoming Summit next Week, after a very Critical MEPs' Debate at EU Parliament in Strasbourg earlier Today (even by EPP Chairman, Manfred Weber, at least on one point : See Infra), Daul prefered to diplomaticaly rather skip it and resolutely Focus, instead, on what could liberate the EU from its current status as "Hostage to Turkey, for the Time being" :

- "EPP (Party/Government Leaders) have made clear Proposals on Managing EU's External Borders, as well as for the acceptance of (Real) Refugees, but the Return of (Economic a.o.) Migrants", he stressed. At the Same Time, in order to achieve EU's aim to Get Back to a fully Functioning "Shenghen" System before the End of the Year, EU has to apply a New Plan on its External Borders, which are among Shengen's Foundations.

The last-minute Turkish proposals reportedly include :

- Doubling the Sum of Money that EU would have to pay to Turkey (i..e. 6 Billions €, instead of 3) for an extension also on 2018.

- Advancing Free Visa Entry into the EU for 75 Million Turks as early as from the Beginning of June, (a point which raises Problems for the People represented even by ChristianDemocrat/EPP MEPs Chaired by Manfred Weber, as well as to several Heads of State).

- EU Should open even More Chapters to (Controversial and UnPopular) "Accession Negotiations" with Turkey.

- A Relocation System where, for each one Refugee or Migrant from Syria returned from Europe to Turkey, Ankara's Government would Choose, among the population still remaining in the Turkish Camps (a Minority, since the Majority prefered to live out of them, even in Difficult Conditions), another one Refugee or Migrant to send him Back to Europe, at a precise EU Country. (Something that Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban reportedly "Vetoed". Officialy intended to push aside "Gangsters and/or Traffiquants of immigrants", would also risk to keep the same Total Quantity of Migrants inside the EU, as that of those who came independently. Moreover, most or all of them would be only Muslims, since Christians, Yazedi, etc, prefer to avoid Turkish Camps and go, instead, to Lebanon or even ...Armenia. Last, but not least, International Human Rights NGOs already denounced the Fact that, acording to International and PanEuropean Law, each case of Asylum Seeker has to be examined individualy).                                                                                                                                                                                       

- Create a "Safe Zone" for Refugees/Migrants "in Syria", where "Humanitarian Aid" could be delivered. (It obviously reminds Turkey's notorious and long-time Demand - Rejected by the UNO and other International/European Organizations - to practicaly ...Invade by its Military Syria).

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Daul didn't comment now on all that, while delicate EU - Turkey Negotiations are going on until Next Week's EU Summit, but, at least, concerning Syria, he Warned that he had "spoken recently with the Bishop of Alep", where "we (EU) have to examine the situation of Christians", who told him that "if Assad falls (apparently without a Peace Plan agreed by all sides involved), then, 1 Million of Christians would have to become Refugees, or be Slaughtered !"

He prefered to simply remind the fact that "EPP has made Proposals on how to Manage EU's External Borders", and that real "Refugees should be accepted", while irregular "Migrants must Return".

Meanwhile, EU must Fight against "Gangsters and Trafficants of Immigrants", as well as "to Combat against ISIL"'s terrorists.

+ In a coherent and interesting move, Daul also added now also that the EU should develop, during the next few years, a real Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP), with a tangible "Defense policy". Otherwise, Europe cannot continue to be credible in the World.

It should include a High-Tech "Research" component, given the Global Competition in Defense Technology.

- This was also part of a parallel series of replies given by Joseph Daul to another 3 Interventions by key Strasbourg University Professors, focused mainly on the current Need to Strengthen the EU in order to become able to Face Today's Challenges.

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Need to Strengthen Europe so that it won't be Hostage to Turkey, nor to anyone else.
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For the Director of the Institute of Political Studies of Strasbourg University, and President of the "Carré de Malberg" Research Institute, Gabriel Eckert, in case of Problems, as the current ones, we should Not Blame always the EU, but also several Member States. Because some Problems are even provoked or aggravated, sometimes, by the behavior of certain States.

So that "a Collective and Positive Thinking" among Europeans was important in practice.

Searching Solutions "against an Inter-Governemental logic", Eckert warned that "a Europe made out of Concentric Circles would be Dangerous" because it could play the game of "States' egoisme".

=> The Fundamental Issue is that of the European General Interest, he concluded.

- The Dean of Economic Sciences' Faculty, Professor Thierry Burger-Helmchen, warned against the Des-Industrialisation of Europe : More than 18% of Industrial Jobs are Lost in the EU, (30% in France). At the same time, many Industrial Jobs Change Nature.

Moreover, it's important to note that "Industrial jobs use to be Less Precarious" than others, he obsered.

Many of them are said to be Transformed into Jobs of Services. But just a small part of them are of High Added Value, (and this is confirmed even inside USA), he pointed out.

Chairman of "Jean Monnet" European Economy, co-Director of the Public Policies' Obseratory in Europe, Professor Emeritus Michel Devoluy, stressed that, in fact, all that, practicacly means that EU needs to be Transformed from an Inter-Governemental Organisation, to a Federal one. A "2 High-Speed" structure, would even be Better.

In "€uroZone", Economic Policy would be needed for the Future. When you have a Common Market, together with a Common Currency, then, an Economic Policy will become necessary. But the Rules which will be imposed on EU Member States (in order to be clearly Democratic) should emanate from 1 Elected Government, with EU Parties, Devolye stressed.

There are 3 Reasons for such a Political union :  (a) There cannot be Financial Solidarity without a joint Economic Policy. (b) No State can tackle the Issues of the Century alone. (b) Peace.

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=> Daul's main replies started by next week's EU Summit's urgent matters, but integrated in an overview of EU's forseable Future Horizon :

- Shenghen system must be urgently strengthened and completed by an EU Exteral Borders Control, with real Refugees protected, but economic Migrants Return back, so that Europe stops being Hostage to Turkey, as, otherwise, it's currently the case, for the Time being. (Comp. Supra).

+ Moreover, during the Next few Years, in order to be credible and able to act in the surrounding World, EU needs to Develop a real Common Foreign and Security Polcy, with Defense capabilities, (a projet able to federate all Europe together), including, particularly, on relevant Scientific and Technological Research and innovation, he stressed in addition.  

++ In parallel, EU needs a "Fiscal and Social Harmonisation", as well as to strengthen €urozone, among its main Priorities.

+++ Industrialisation is, indeed, an important topical issue, (Comp. Supra), and, in this context, f. ex., EU should fix certain aims to reach in ssome years, (despite 1 or 2 inconclusive attempts), while France should start thinking about possible contributions on modern Telecoms, etc., from next year, Daul pointed out.

* Meanwhile, attempts to Destabilize the EU, f.ex. by targetting German Chancelor Angie Merkel and/or others, threaten to make things worse, and should be rejected, a fortiori when EU's Franco-German core needs to be Strengthened.

++++ On the EU Deal about the Brittish Referendum of June 2016, EU Parliament and Court of Justice have a say, while several UK Officials at the European Institutions reportedly try to use also other available EU Citizenships in order to maintain their jobs, he observed smiling...

+++++ Meanwhile, EU Member Countries like currently Greece, will have to prove if they really have a responsible State, because, otherwise, a "GrExit" from €urozone, and/or even Shengen, during the next few Years, might not be a surprise, he warned.

- "We (EU) tried everything, including even our (EPP) politicians", Daul criticized, in this regard.

However, speaking later-on to "Eurofora", he admitted that he "knew" that, in fact, Greece never had a real, independent Government from the Right side of the Political spectrum, during recent years, but only a shaky Cohabitation with the remnants of "PASOK" (and previously even of another, smaller, Leftist Party), while, on the contrary, the Right had been Divided in various parts, for the first time in the modern History of the country.

Thus, f.ex., when the previous Greek Government tried to tackle the thorny issue of State Radio/TV Reform, (by closing a notoriously clientelist and costly "ERT" and opening a new, slimmer and hopefuly axiocratic "NERIT"), suddenly, the established Media launched an unprecedented ... massive Censorship of all Greek Government's official declarations, back on August 2014, so that the "New Democracy" Governing party's Youth had to open a ...Web Radio (sic !) in a desperate attempt to publish at least some official news, while, at the same time, the then Government Spokesman, Minister Simos Kedikoglou, as he denounced to "Eurofora", was practicaly Hindered and Boycotted by most established Media which systematically refused to publish even the slightest declaration from him, and all his Government, to the point that competent CoE's Senior Officials on Freedom of Expression were genuinly astonished in Strasbourg, in front of such an Unprecedented situation, as they told us then, (See, f.ex. : .....)

Concerning particularly EPP Chief Joseph Daul, it's also interesting to note the fact that the recently Elected new Leader of the main Greek Opposition Party, "New Democracy"s Kyriakos Mitsotakis, (with whom "Eurofora"s co-founder has cooperated in topical Press events as early as, already, since 2007 in Paris, on the occasion of a Foreign Ministerial visit at the Quai d'Orsay, etc), has a Double Experience on such Clientelist issues in Greece's Past which have notoriously provoked that Huhe Debt since the beginning of the 1980ies :

First via the 1990-1993 Government of National Unity against Corruption, (Chaired by his Father, a former twice Prime Minister, and composed by all Political Parties, from the Right and the Left of the Political spectrum of the country, with rthe only Exception of PASOK, suspect No 1 for most Clientelist/Corruption Scandals of Past Governments). But, afterwards, also personaly, by his role as Minister for State Reform, during the above-mentioned 2014 Samaras Government coalition, which tried to tackle also the thorny ERT RadioTV State Media problem, (Comp. Supra).

++++ However, last, but noit least, Daul practicaly chose to conclude his speech by pointing at the current need to "Find an Idea able to make (particularly Young) People Dream of a Europe" of the Future, as he said, with a smile, pointing at the next few years.

Perhaps the most Interesting, but also Challenging issue ?