The German government has suspended an agreement with Italy to voluntarily take in refugees due to Italy’s refusal to respect the Dublin rules. In other news: Slovenia and Luxembourg pledge for equal treatment of all EU candidates and the preservation of Schengen. Slovak and Hungarian police are combating illegal migration together.
According to consultancy McKinsey, the European car industry has lost around 5 percentage points of market share in the Chinese car market since 2019. In other news: The European Court of Human Rights found that the current political system in Bosnia and Herzegovina prioritizes ethnic representation. As a result, elections are undemocratic. Bulgaria stressed its ambitions concerning its Schengen membership during the Strategic Forum.
The European Commission, the Netherlands and Italy agree on a migration deal with Tunisia. The Commission formally requests Austria to address shortcomings in its implementation of the Habitats Directive in the Hohe Tauern National Park in the province of Salzburg. Bulgarian Prime Minister Nikolai Denkov hopes his country will join the Schengen area in October.
Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg urges EU candidate North Macedonia to accept constitutional changes in order to advance its EU accession process. The government of Morocco seeks a partnership with the EU in the fisheries sector. The European Parliament criticises Austria for vetoing the Schengen accession of Romania and Bulgaria.
International support is gradually arriving in Turkey and Syria, but many earthquake victims are still waiting for the help they need; an EU donor conference is planned for March. Bosnia and Herzegovina’s new foreign minister, Elmedin Konaković, paid an official visit to Brussels. Migration into the EU: The Slovak Republic and others stressed the necessity of strict protection of the external borders. Bulgaria and Romania insist they have fulfilled the conditions to be accepted into Schengen.