Poland and Hungary blocked a planned declaration on migration policy and other strategically important issues at the EU summit in Granada, Spain. Several EU diplomats told the German Press Agency on Friday. Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced on the short news service X (formerly Twitter): “I have decided to veto the part about migration.”

Orban announced resistance beforehand

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban announced further resistance to plans for an EU asylum reform, which stipulates an obligation to show solidarity with countries particularly affected by migration. From his point of view, there is no longer any chance of compromises and agreements after Hungary and Poland have been “legally raped”.

Orban alluded to the fact that important decisions for the planned reform of the European asylum system were recently made by majority vote against the will of Hungary and Poland. Regardless of legal analyzes to the contrary, the two countries are of the opinion that this could only have happened by consensus, i.e. without dissenting votes.

Blocking has no effect on the running process

They refer to EU summit declarations in 2016, 2018 and 2019. A text from the heads of state and government from June 2019 states: “There must be a consensus for a reform of the Dublin Regulation on the basis of a A balanced relationship between responsibility and solidarity can be found.” Hungary and Poland interpret this to mean that decisions on the entire asylum policy should only be made by consensus.

In particular, they object to the fact that, according to the plans, some of the asylum seekers will be taken from heavily burdened countries such as Italy and Greece in the future. Countries that do not want to accept refugees would be forced to make compensation payments.

The blocking of the planned joint declaration on migration has no immediate impact on the ongoing process for European asylum reform. However, it is conceivable that Poland and Hungary will use the current negotiations on a revision of the long-term EU budget to put further pressure on the issue of asylum reform. Unanimity is required on this issue, and the revision should also allow financial aid to Ukraine to continue.

On the sidelines of the summit on the asylum dispute, Polish Prime Minister Morawiecki emphasized that he was not afraid to oppose the “diktat from Brussels and Berlin”.