New Borders inside Europe ? Franco German Proposal is Another Assault on Greece

[C. Flower]

The French and German governments are jointly trying to get the right to autonomously close borders within the EU, and to penalise Greece and Italy if they "fail" to keep borders closed to illegal immigrants.

In a joint letter sent to the Danish presidency, Claude Gueant, the French interior minister, and Hans-Peter Friedrich, his German counterpart, are calling for countries to be granted the right to re-impose border controls unilaterally for 30 days if national authorities believe other countries – particularly on the EU’s southern and eastern frontiers – aren’t securing their borders.
A leaked copy of the letter Brussels Blog got its hands on (in French) can be read here.

http://blogs.ft.com/brusselsblog/201...#axzz1sZouIH2O

The target of these new controls isn’t mentioned specifically, but it seems pretty clear that Paris and Berlin are talking about Greece, which has become the entry point of choice for immigrants from the Middle East and north Africa, thanks to its porous border with Turkey. Accusations have been flying for months that Greece is not living up to its Schengen responsibilities, and Frontex, the EU border control agency, has had to send reinforcements to back up Greek border guards. On the very first of the three pages, the Franco-German letter makes pretty clear they’re talking about Greece:

The tone of the letter is threatening -

Member states situated in southern and eastern borders of the EU have already made significant efforts to fight illegal immigration and protect the external borders against current threats…. Standards to protect our external borders are now in effect harmonized, but we only have a few options at our disposal to react when those standards are not complied with. We need a mechanism of assistance to ensure the implementation of common standards. We also need a mechanism for compensation if a member state, in spite of the aid it was given, is unable to perform its obligations to protect the EU’s external border

Greece and Italy absorb the costs of supporting immigrants who are trying to get to France and Germany, who then threaten them.

There is an undertone of "sending in the troops." Frontex EU border troops have already been used to prevent immigration into Greece. I am wondering if this accounts for the widespread rumours in Greece that foreign troops have been present?

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/3ad61...44feabdc0.html

[fluffybiscuits]

The French and German governments are jointly trying to get the right to autonomously close borders within the EU, and to penalise Greece and Italy if they "fail" to keep borders closed to illegal immigrants.



http://blogs.ft.com/brusselsblog/201...#axzz1sZouIH2O



The tone of the letter is threatening -



Greece and Italy absorb the costs of supporting immigrants who are trying to get to France and Germany, who then threaten them.

There is an undertone of "sending in the troops." Frontex EU border troops have already been used to prevent immigration into Greece. I am wondering if this accounts for the widespread rumours in Greece that foreign troops have been present?

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/3ad61...44feabdc0.html

Bully boy tactics again by the big boys looking to inflict their will upon Greece. If they are so worried about illegal immigrants why dont they give some of those new shiny submarines and other equipment they have been forcing Greece to buy...

[C. Flower]

It appears to me to be part of the unravelling of the EU, which might take place incrementally, rather than in a big bang.

Removal of border controls internally is really part of the essence of the EU project. Reintroduction and strengthening of them, and in a way unilaterally controlled by nations, rather than by negotiating and agreeement, is a breakdown and reversal of that process.

[Holly]

Ireland was never part of Schengen but that did not stop very many Nigerians from getting here through England. Not so long ago, the Danes reestablished border posts on the German frontier because so many Turks and others were using Germany as a transit country to get to Scandanavia. There are parts of East Oslo that look and smell like Cairo or North Islington. The EU has already left it too late to pretend to have proper borders.

[Apjp]

The French and German governments are jointly trying to get the right to autonomously close borders within the EU, and to penalise Greece and Italy if they "fail" to keep borders closed to illegal immigrants.



http://blogs.ft.com/brusselsblog/201...#axzz1sZouIH2O



The tone of the letter is threatening -



Greece and Italy absorb the costs of supporting immigrants who are trying to get to France and Germany, who then threaten them.

There is an undertone of "sending in the troops." Frontex EU border troops have already been used to prevent immigration into Greece. I am wondering if this accounts for the widespread rumours in Greece that foreign troops have been present?

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/3ad61...44feabdc0.html

Surprised at the Germans. They are well renowned for their tolerance of the Turks or so I thought what with the popularity of Kebab's over there and the joke about who really invented it. This could be mostly a sarkozy move for the election. I'm almost sure this is Sarkozy.

[Apjp]

Ireland was never part of Schengen but that did not stop very many Nigerians from getting here through England. Not so long ago, the Danes reestablished border posts on the German frontier because so many Turks and others were using Germany as a transit country to get to Scandanavia. There are parts of East Oslo that look and smell like Cairo or North Islington. The EU has already left it too late to pretend to have proper borders.

We're hardly worse off because of a few nigerians. I'd be more worried about what we have let the americans do within our borders tbh.

[fluffybiscuits]

We're hardly worse off because of a few nigerians. I'd be more worried about what we have let the americans do within our borders tbh.

+1

Smash any borders in the world etc etc. Ye all know my stance...

[Kev Bar]

+1

Smash any borders in the world etc etc. Ye all know my stance...

There's a tinge of romance and sexual conquest about lonely border crossings at night.
Then there's the thrill of sweat drenched bribery in those noon tropical crossings.

But I'll offer it up for humanity if you insist.

[Spectabilis]

There's a tinge of romance and sexual conquest about lonely border crossings at night.
Then there's the thrill of sweat drenched bribery in those noon tropical crossings.

My goodness Kev Bar. That is prose to win a Pulitzer, an Oscar for a screenplay, or prize for the best opening lines of a short story. And I am not being cyinical here. I do hope there is another great book in the making here.

[DCon]

Interesting piece in Der Spiegel

Germany and France's joint proposal to allow Schengen-zone countries to temporarily reintroduce border controls as a means of last resort might sound harmless. But doing so would damage one of the strongest symbols of European unity and perhaps even contribute to the EU's demise.

To throw this achievement into doubt now is a vote of no confidence in Europe. The fact that this proposal is coming in the middle of the French election campaign makes it even more suspicious. With his back to the wall, French President Nicolas Sarkozy is pretending to take a tough-guy stance toward immigrants. And the fact that Germany's interior minister is allowing himself to get caught up in this charade is regrettable. Still, if you take a look at his party affiliations -- as a member of the center-right Christian Social Union (CSU), the Bavarian sister party to Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) -- it's hardly surprising.

But this symbolic act could have drastic consequences. It is a relapse into the type of nationalist thinking that many viewed as part of the past. And it brings to mind a country that continental Europeans like to make fun of for its obsession with its own borders: Great Britain.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/...828815,00.html

[fluffybiscuits]

There's a tinge of romance and sexual conquest about lonely border crossings at night.
Then there's the thrill of sweat drenched bribery in those noon tropical crossings.

But I'll offer it up for humanity if you insist.

Borders, in days of yore

Agree with Spectabillis, some nice writing there Kev! You and a pen are best friends