BRUSSELS \u2014 European Union nations bickered openly over migration policy Thursday in an east-west divide centred on several nations that refuse to accept refugee quotas.<\/p>\n
The Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia announced that they planned to spend around 35 million euros ($41 million) to beef up EU borders after the four countries \u2014 known as the \u201cVisegrad Four\u201d \u2014 were criticized for failing to show solidarity with the rest of the bloc.<\/p>\n
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte still thought it was \u201cshameless\u201d and said shirking responsibility by not taking in their share would wither the EU. \u201cIf we allow this then we get an EU where people go to shop for whatever they like,\u201d and give little back, he said.<\/p>\n
Greece and Italy have had to play host to tens of thousands of\u00a0migrants\u00a0who have landed there after crossing the Mediterranean or Aegean seas, severely stretching the two countries’ resources. They have called for help from EU partners.<\/p>\n
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose country has taken in the largest number of refugees, said the announcement by the Visegrad nations was welcome but not enough.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need solidarity not just in regulating and steering migration … on the external borders. That is good and important, but we also need internal solidarity,\u201d Merkel said. \u201cIn my opinion, there cannot be selective solidarity among European member states.\u201d<\/p>\n
EU Council President Donald Tusk said the divide \u201cwhen it comes to migration, it is between east and west.\u201d He there have been complaints that eastern members were happy to get aid from their richer western partners but unwilling to live up to their part of the bargain of being in a joint endeavour.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe European Union is not only an ATM when you need support,\u201d said Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel. \u201cCooperation means solidarity and responsibility.\u201d<\/p>\n
The issue of\u00a0migrants\u00a0and refugees was high on the agenda of a two-day EU summit in Brussels that started Thursday \u2014 and some saw the border funding move by the four nations as a cynical ploy to avoid accepting refugee quotas.<\/p>\n
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said their contribution will help save European funds. And, he added, \u201cif we will see good projects in the future, first of all projects that are effective, we are ready to spend even more money because we really want to show solidarity.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite the tensions, the discussion at the summit dinner table remained within bounds, Rutte said. \u201cIt was fine because we can all take a little hit. If it is the spirit of ‘I like your drawing if you like mine,’ we get nowhere.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hungary saw tens of thousands of Syrian refugees and others pass through its territory in 2015 looking for shelter in richer northern European nations. Prime Minister Viktor Orban ordered the construction of a border fence to keep\u00a0migrants\u00a0out.<\/p>\n
Orban said Thursday that the border funds will help defend the EU’s borders with the outside world and will also contribute to EU work in Libya, where many\u00a0migrants\u00a0leave for Europe.<\/p>\n
After more than 1 million refugees entered Europe in 2015, the EU introduced a refugee-sharing plan to help overwhelmed Greece and Italy.<\/p>\n
The four Visegrad nations voted against the quotas, but were legally bound to accept refugees as the decision was made by a majority vote. Still, Hungary and Poland have taken in no refugees under the plan, while the Czech Republic has accepted only 12.<\/p>\n
The EU Commission wants to introduce a permanent mechanism that would oblige countries to take in quotas of refugees if a migrant surge hit one or more EU nations. The Visegrad nations remain firmly against migrant quotas.<\/p>\n
\u201cQuotas do not work. They are ineffective,\u201d Fico said. \u201cThe decision on quotas really divided the European Union.\u201d<\/p>\n
Disagreement over how to manage the migrant challenge has created distrust between EU neighbours and fueled anti-migrant parties across Europe, slowly threatening to undermine the entire European project.<\/p>\n
French President Emmanuel Macron said it is important not to get bogged down in old disputes and solidarity can take different forms.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to be able to express solidarity without getting trapped in any excessive roadblocks\u201d about the past, he said. \u201cI think everyone needs to make an effort.\u201d<\/p>\n
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