The European Union (EU) has declared Kosovo and 7 other countries as “safe” for asylum.
According to the announcement, it is known that BOARD agreed its position on two pieces of EU legislation that will strengthen the practical implementation of the key safe country concepts in EU asylum rules.
The announcement states that these new EU migration laws aim to establish faster and more effective asylum procedures for those who should not receive protection within the EU.
In this regard, Rasmus Stoklund, Danish Minister for Immigration and Integration, said: “I am happy that we – the member states – have agreed on a general approach to reviewing the ‘safe third country’ concept, which allows member states to make agreements with safe third countries for asylum processing outside Europe.”
According to the Council decision, Kosovo has been included as a safe country of origin. This means that asylum applications from Kosovar citizens can be processed in an accelerated manner. Kosovo’s inclusion on the list is based on the assessment that the country offers sufficient protection against persecution and serious violations of fundamental rights.
However, this does not mean that every asylum request from Kosovo will be automatically rejected — each individual application can be considered if there are specific reasons for protection.
The announcement explains that the new regulation, which revises the concept of a safe third country, will expand the circumstances in which an asylum application can be rejected as inadmissible.
In addition to Kosovo, the Council agreed that these countries should also be designated as safe countries of origin at the EU level: Bangladesh, Colombia, Egypt, India, Morocco and Tunisia. /Telegraph/