“We cannot treat people with a right to asylum the same way as people from a safe country. They need to be sent back. That is, from our perspective, completely clear. On the other hand, we should scrutinize the now completely outdated principle that only the migrants' first country of arrival should be burdened with their registration as well as with the process of sorting out who has the right to asylum and who needs to be deported.” PeopleWayNeedsShouldFirstsWellsCountryHandsProcessPrinciplesClearPerspectiveSafeTreatsArrivalsAsylumsMigrantsOutdatedSortingRegistrationScrutinizeSorting Out Author:Paolo Gentiloni
“But it could be that we, as early as spring, will need to embark on a new policy in order to save one of the cornerstones of European politics: personal freedom of movement.” NeedsOrderPolicyMovementSpringCornerstonesPersonal Freedom Author:Paolo Gentiloni
“The route for the refugees currently goes through Greece and the Balkans or through Italy; if there were a crisis in north-eastern Europe, Poland might just as well be affected. In this case we are dealing with mechanisms that we do not control. We need to change that.” IfsNeedsWellsMightCasesEuropeCrisisAffectedMechanismRoutesRefugeeEasternGreeceNeed A ChangePolandEastern EuropeBalkans Author:Paolo Gentiloni
“The message that "we can't take in everybody" is imperative. At the same time, the decision as to who has a right to asylum needs to be made in Brussels.” NeedsMadeDecisionMessagesImperativesAsylumsBrussels Author:Paolo Gentiloni
“It is clear that several countries, in the Balkans for example, need to be considered countries of safe origin. But others like, in my opinion, Eritrea, undoubtedly need to be considered a country of origin with a valid claim to asylum. And with a third group of states, like Nigeria for example, each individual case needs to be evaluated. Then there are also very controversial cases like Afghanistan. In any case, united European action is needed. This argument for Europeanization may sound utopian, but there is no alternative.” NeedsMayCountryStatesActionIndividualSoundUnitedOpinionCasesClearGroupsExampleNeededSafeArgumentThirdsClaimsAlternativesAfghanistanControversialNigeriaUtopianAsylumsBalkansEritrea Author:Paolo Gentiloni
“We need to move forward, from the common currency to the banking union to a common financial policy and, in the middle-term, to a common foreign and security policy. That will take time, because we need to figure out how to deal with those countries that don't always want a more tightly integrated European Union.” WantNeedsCountryMovingTermDealsCommonMiddleSecurityFiguresPolicyUnionsFinancialMoving ForwardTake TimeCurrencyBankingIntegratedEuropean Union Author:Paolo Gentiloni
“We [European countries] probably need to move forward together, each at their own speed. The faster ones, that could be the countries in the euro zone. The others would be those who are interested in the continued development of the common market, but reject the idea of an ever stronger political integration.” NeedsIdeasCountryWould BeTogetherMovingPoliticalCommonDevelopmentStrongerSpeedMoving ForwardFasterZoneRejectsIntegrationEuroEuropean Countries Author:Paolo Gentiloni
“The problem is, if at all, in the different view of the economy, of economic growth. Growth is too low, even for us. That needs to change: More investments, a stronger role by the European Central Bank. Otherwise, there are no tensions between Italy and Germany. But on this point, compromises must be reached and we will reach them.” IfsNeedsDifferentProblemGrowthViewsRolesEconomyEconomicLowsStrongerInvestmentCompromiseTensionGermanyEconomic GrowthNeed A ChangeCentral BanksDifferent Views Author:Paolo Gentiloni
“We have a strong military deployment in Iraq and Afghanistan. In countries like Syria, we need a diplomatic breakthrough to end the war. In Libya, the country must first of all be stabilized to stop IS. This means supporting the Libyan government, including in terms of security. We don't want to repeat the mistakes of the past in that country. The situation is extremely dangerous and the next days could be decisive.” WantNeedsFirstsMeanWarEndsCountryGovernmentPastNextStrongTermMistakeSituationSecurityMilitaryDangerousIncludingIraqRepeatsAfghanistanSyriaNext DayBreakthroughDiplomaticLibyaDeployment Author:Paolo Gentiloni
