European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker yesterday urged EU governments to accept a mandatory system to share out a wave of refugees fleeing war and poverty, but also promised to improve frontier defenses and deport more illegal migrants.
In his first State of the Union address to the European parliament, Juncker outlined an emergency plan to distribute 160,000 refugees among the 28 EU member states and promised a permanent asylum mechanism to cope with future crises.
Defending his much-criticized proposal for mandatory burden sharing, he said Europe could not leave Greece, Hungary and Italy, the main receiving countries, to cope with the flood.
He appealed to Europeans to respond to the crisis with humanity, dignity and “historical fairness,” and not take fright, saying the vast majority of the 500,000 people who had arrived in Europe this year were fleeing war in Syria and Libya, “the terror of the Islamic State” or “dictatorship in Eritrea.”
Europe was a continent where many had been refugees over the centuries and it was rich enough to cope with a challenge far smaller than the one facing Syria’s neighbors — Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon.
“It is Europe today that represents a beacon of hope, a haven of stability in the eyes of women and men in the Middle East and in Africa. That is something to be proud of and not something to fear,” the former Luxembourger prime minister said.
“The Europe I want to live in is illustrated by those who want to help,” he added, denouncing calls to discriminate among refugees according to their religion.
He was heckled by UK Independence Party leader Nigel Farage, who said most of those arriving were economic migrants and the EU should emulate Australia’s “stop the boats” policy to halt a flow of “biblical proportions.”
Italian lawmaker Gianluca Buonanno of the anti-immigration Northern League donned an Angela Merkel mask to interrupt Juncker in an attempt to suggest that the German chancellor was dictating asylum policy to Europe.
Juncker said the refugee crisis was his top priority, before the economy, Greece’s debt woes, Ukraine, climate change and a looming vote on Britain’s membership of the EU.
That list of issues showed the EU was in a bad state, he said, declaring: “There is not enough Europe in this Union, and there is not enough union in this Union.”
He confirmed plans for a common EU list of “safe countries of origin,” whose citizens would be subject to fast-track deportations if they breached immigration laws.
He also urged EU member states to allow refugees to work from day one while their asylum applications are being processed.
Juncker’s proposals face opposition from several central European governments when EU interior ministers meet on Monday. Many reject compulsory quotas and some want to take in only a handful of Christian refugees, but under strong pressure from Germany, France and Italy, the tide appears to be turning toward solidarity.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source