Polish PM reiterates his 'no' to EU migrant scheme. "We will not allow... that human traffickers dictate conditions for the EU"

Mateusz Morawiecki, the prime minister, has said Poland will not agree to the EU’s latest migrant relocation scheme and will not pay for migrants it refuses to admit.

In May, EU home affairs commissioner Ylva Johansson presented a reform plan for the community’s asylum and migration system. The proposals have reignited a 2015 debate around migration laws in the wake of the then migration crisis, when some EU states, including Poland, refused to accept mandatory relocation quotas, which spurred the European Commission (EC) to launch EU law infringement procedures against them.

On Thursday, EU interior ministers approved the system by majority vote, with Poland and Hungary opposing the scheme. The plan basically forces member states to either accept an allocated migrant quota or pay EUR 20,000 per migrant that has not been admitted.

But Morawiecki said at a press conference on Friday that the government’s position on migration remains unchanged.

„Poland, just like in June 2018, will not allow… that human traffickers dictate conditions for the European Union,” Morawiecki said. „We opt for sealing borders, including the southern border, not allowing large migration,” he added.

Morawiecki went on to say that „Poland will certainly refuse to accept forced migration, the distribution of some mandatory quotas, but neither will we agree to any obligatory payment for not accepting migrants.”

Under the EU system of „mandatory solidarity,” a minimum number of relocations will be established annually for member states and the figure has been initially set at 30,000.

The Polish government argues it has accepted the most Ukrainian refugees among all EU member states and complains that hosting them has not been adequately compensated for with EU money. The country’s conservative Law and Justice government has been a staunch opponent of EU migrant relocation schemes. (PAP)

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