EU to launch pilot refugee protection programme in Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova :: Charter'97 :: News

The European Commission plans to launch a pilot programme in Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine to offer protection to refugees and manage migration flows. Friso Roscam Abbing, spokesman for the European Union`s commissioner for justice, freedom and security, told Belapan that the countries were selected for the pilot programme due to a number of important factors, including "the assessment of the particular refugee situation in third countries", financial opportunities available under existing EU funds, existing relationships and frameworks for cooperation between the 25-nation bloc and particular countries or regions.

The programme will be aimed at providing direct assistance and protection to refugees. According to the spokesman, "contacts with the government will be limited to what is strictly necessary for the efficient implementation of the projects" and the programme will be largely carried out through cooperation with nongovernmental organizations.

Refugees seeking asylum in the European Union dropped in number by 34 per cent from 425,520 to 282,480 between 2002 and 2004. Great Britain and France are major destinations, receiving some 60,000 asylum seekers annually each.

The share of Russian nationals among the refugees, 9.8 per cent, was highest, followed by those of citizens of Serbia and Montenegro (6.6 per cent), Turkey (6.1 per cent) and Iraq (4.9 per cent).