EU chief proposes EU emergency framework for mass migrant movements

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has proposed a new emergency response system to help European Union member countries deal with sudden mass migrations of migrants across their borders.

Von der Leyen announced the proposal Wednesday during her annual State of the Union address to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, as the EU is dealing with the fallout from a massive influx of migrants into Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta.

The framework will step up cooperation between member states and provide more operational and financial support when individual countries face exceptional migration pressure. The Commission said its wider migration plans include a permanent solidarity framework, operational and financial help and clearer rules on responsibility for asylum applications.

According to a European Parliament research briefing, around 80,000 people entered Ceuta from Morocco on July 30. This made the incident one of the largest irregular border crossings in EU history. At least 72 people were killed in the crossing, the briefing said.

The Commission has already given Spain €114.7 million in emergency aid after the crossings in July. The money is being spent on border surveillance, security infrastructure, more staff, and migrant reception and return procedures. Operational support has also been given by Frontex, Europol and the European Union Agency for Asylum.

The proposal comes after the introduction of temporary internal border controls by several EU countries in the wake of the Ceuta crisis and fears of secondary migrant movements.