The European Union is in trouble again. Apart from the unexpected decline of the Euro currency, the Brussels officials have faced another threat. This time it’s all about the Schengen Agreement. If the agreement undergoes considerable changes, it can affect the entire EU and its currency.
The Schengen Agreement, a document signed by 25 members of the EU, has been considered the main achievement of the European integration. The plans to create something like “the United States” of Europe without the internal borders now seem to bulge at the seams.
Which EU country was the first one to regret not having its borders guarded?Numerous analysts from the West-European Association of Traders and Investors under have given a number of answers and explanations on the Schengen issue:
In the past the idea to restore the internal borders was mentioned many times but no steps were taken to implement it. The reason was the illegal emigrants from around the world. However, the situation has recently changed: the series of revolutions in North Africa significantly increased the inflow of refugees to the EU. The Union didn’t manage to cope with such a huge inflow of refugees and started panicking. Last month France closed its border with Italy. The French authorities did it without any preliminary agreement with Brussels and Italy, being guided exclusively by their own interests. The thing is that Italy started giving the refugees special permits allowing them to travel to other EU countries. Consequently all the (French-speaking) illegal emigrants from Tunis headed for France. An entire passenger train full of refugees was stopped and sent back to Italy. Of course, it should be understood that Italy cannot cope with the problem alone.
Another reason is the elimination of the world’s number 1 terrorist Osama bin Laden. After his elimination the entire Western Europe seems to be in paranoia. Strange as it may seem but it was Denmark that decided to temporary restore its national borders with Sweden and Germany. The German and Swedish politicians are indignant over such a decision.
What is currently being done to solve the problem?
The President of France Nikolas Sarkozy and the Prime Minister of Italy Silvio Berlusconi offer the European authorities to adopt a package of measures to control the unprecedented inflow of refugees:
Firstly, they offer to reach a series of agreements with the governments of numerous North African states to start sending the refugees back to their homelands.
Secondly, the two leaders urge the EU authorities to develop and introduce a single migration policy, a single border service for the entire EU and a single system of giving political asylum.
Thirdly, they offer to give the EU states the right to temporarily restore their national borders in force-majeure situations. The Euro Commission held an urgent meeting devoted to the current migration problem. According to Cecilia Malmström, European Commissioner for Home Affairs, in order to preserve the stability of the Schengen zone it will probably be necessary to temporary restore the internal borders, but only if there is an extremely urgent need (force-majeure situation).
Brussels agreed to the following measures:
· To create a single system of giving political asylum by 2012.
· To intensify the border control at the outer EU borders.
· To improve the system of legal migration from the 3rd-world countries. And that’s all.
The press secretary of the Euro Commission says that the Schengen Agreement cannot be temporarily suspended.
What will be the possible sanction applied to those who has broken the Schengen Agreement?
1. Obviously, no sanctions will be applied to France and Denmark. Their actions can be considered in accordance with article 23 of the Schengen Agreement, which allows temporary restoration of internal border in case of a serious threat to a country’s national security.
2. It their turn Denmark and France will promise to make the border control fairy “selective”.
3. There were several cases of temporary border restoration in the EU (after a series of explosions in Spain in 2004, during the World Football Cup, during the latest NATO summit in Estonia etc.)
4. In other worlds Brussels seems to be ready to shut its eyes to the “self-will” of France and Denmark, at least until the North-African crisis is over.
How does the current tension around the Sehngen Agreement threaten the EU and its currency?
The situation may have a lot of unpleasant consequences:
· The European tourism may suffer big losses, especially as the summer season is coming.
· The Schengen problem may affect the Euro currency, making it decline in value.
· The “domino effect’ may take place – other countries (including Spain, Germany and Italy) may follow the example of France and Denmark. Switzerland, which is a Schengen member but is not a EU member, seems to be getting more worried about the problem.
· Many European countries are going to hold parliamentary elections in the near future. So the Shengen and migration questions are expected to be the key factors influencing the election results.
EUR index:
Market Leader and offer you to visit the forum for traders and investors and to participate in a survey by answering the following question:
Will other EU countries restore their national borders?
· Yes, they will.
· No, they won’t. Europeans value the absence of internal borders.
· No, they won’t. Brussels just won’t let it happen.
