POLICY AND DIPLOMACY ON MIGRATION IN THE E.U.

Abstract

Globalisation, demographic changes and society's transformations currently generate repercussions on the EU, on its Member States and on other countries worldwide. According to the UN estimates there are 214 million international migrants on the planet, and 740 million internal migrants. The number of people displaced by force amounts to 44 million. It is also estimated that about 50 million people living and working abroad find themselves in an illegal situation. Setting up a dialogue at global level allows giving answers to these challenges, as well as to focus the attention on common concerns. Of course, the effects are more pronounced at regional, national and local level.

Headnote

Abstract: Globalisation, demographic changes and society's transformations currently generate repercussions on the EU, on its Member States and on other countries worldwide. According to the UN estimates there are 214 million international migrants on the planet, and 740 million internal migrants. The number of people displaced by force amounts to 44 million. It is also estimated that about 50 million people living and working abroad find themselves in an illegal situation. Setting up a dialogue at global level allows giving answers to these challenges, as well as to focus the attention on common concerns. Of course, the effects are more pronounced at regional, national and local level.

Keywords: migration, asylum, politics, diplomacy, EU policies

«Given the state of the world, the immigrants will soon come to Europe»

KofiAnnan - (2003) when receiving the Saharov Prize in the European Parliament

I. INTRODUCTION

I.1. The European migration policy position and place within the EU internal and external policies. Romania's stand (11)

Migration and asylum issues have been on the agenda mainly due to the Lampedusa drama, which has resulted in 366 deaths in October 2013, and to the geopolitical context of the EU borders which are becoming more and more unstable. The European Council meeting of 27 June 2014 discussed the future and the strategic orientations of the EU migration policy in Post- Stockholm Programviews. The issues of migration and asylum have been analyzed also with the occasion of elections for the European Parliament. The talks have estimated that the EU must intervene more in this area. Beyond the short term difficulties occurring at present, the level of unemployment and the scarcity of labor related to the aging of the European population bring about a reason for a substantial discussion and for taking solid actions to equip the EU with a global policy on migration. This policy could lead the discussion in the following directions:

1. Within the Mobility Partnerships, the groups of countries which are facing comparable needs related to the highly qualified workforce and provide working conditions, pay and similar life opportunities could undertake together attractive policies for workers who have the necessary qualifications.

2. The EU must also work on improving the conditions regarding the admission of immigrants and facilitate - on the professional considerations - the intra-community mobility of immigrant workers already established in a Member State.

3. Thirdly, it needs a more active integration policy to accompany the reforms and to resort more frequently to exchange of best practices between Member States.

It is estimated that the EU has been holding competencies in the field of migration policy for a decade and a half. It can be stated that it is a recent policy.

Three five-year programs were developed, which provided a number of guidelines in the area of the asylum policy, regarding the visa and the border management. Here can be mentioned the Tampere program in 1999, the Hague Programme in 2004 and in 2009 the Stockholm Programme which ended in December 2014. What was found to be specific for these programs is that the components of these Programmes refer specifically to the issue of EU external border management, a second component viewing the issue of visas and the third issue considering the illegal immigrants. At the same time taken into account was the problem of asylum and international protection based on the Geneva Convention. To which, later on, were added the problems of legal immigrants as well as the rules on the entry and legal stay in the EU. The politics of migration and asylum should achieve a double balance: internally, among the Member States, to achieve a better balance between solidarity and responsibility, and an external balance between the EU and third parties; in other words, to achieve a better balance between attractiveness and security. The stakes of the migration policy should accomplish mutual trust (8) - a prerequisite to strengthening internal controls and the removal of internal controls. The migration policy is also needed considering that i) globalization is a factor for strengthening the migratory movement, and ii) the effectiveness depending on the cooperation between the Member States and especially between the countries of origin and the ones of transit. The logic behind the common space for circulation determines a new principle of regional cooperation. The objective is to eliminate as much as possible internal border controls in order to toughen controls at the external borders. If external border controls decrease, the need arises to reintroduce internal border controls. Currently some member states estimated that there are large asymmetries between the different countries within the EU and especially between Member States located in the vicinity of the external borders of the EU and the ones recipient of migratory flows (subsequent to the situation of Lampedusa, Italy and Malta complained of the lack of solidarity between Member States on the difficulties related to the treatment of migratory flows and demanded amending the Dublin Agreement (according to which an immigrant can not apply for asylum but only in the first Member State in which he arrives to avoid double claims for asylum) It was also pointed out that the requested solidarity is legitimate, but every state should be responsible for signing the Treaties. The policy on migration is needed to protect the free circulation within the Single Market, to avoid any abuse, a common policy on migration being alo requested for strengthening the external EU border control. Considering the public opinion there is confusion between the freedom of movement and the migration policy. The freedom of movement is not synonymous with immigration.

Immigration in the EU is a reality. Currently, according to the document (1) - immigration refers to nationals of third countries and not to EU citizens. They represent approximately 3.8% of the total population in the EU (2, 6). Since 2002 the European Union recorded 1,5 - 2 million arrivals per year in net figures. On January 1, 2006, the number of third country nationals residing in the EU amounted to 18.5 million. There did not exist, at the respective date, reasons to believe that migration flows will be reduced. Based on its humanitarian traditions, Europe needs to show continued solidarity with refugees and the persons in need of protection (10). The economic differences between developed and developing countries / regions, globalization, trade, political problems and the instability in the countries of origin, the possibility of finding a job in developed countries are listed among the main factors influencing the international mobility of people. In the context of an aging Europe, the potential contribution of immigration to the EU economic performance is significant. The life expectancy of Europeans is increasing, the so-called "baby boom" generation is facing retirement and birth rates are low. In 2007 employment at EU level, respectively the total of those employed and the unemployed individuals, was on average at around 235 million (2, 11). According to the latest demographic forecasting (3), it is estimated that by the year 2060 the population of a working age in the EU will decrease by nearly 50 million even if the net immigration level remains at a level similar to the historical levels, and respectively it will decrease by around 110 million if immigration is not taken into account. The previously described developments represent risks for the sustainability of pension schemes, of health and social protection systems, and require increasing the public expenditure (4) Immigration is a reality that has to be managed effectively. In an open Europe without internal borders, no Member State can manage immigration on its own. We must approach a unity without internal borders which currently comprises 28 states and over 500 million people and a common visa policy. EU economies are integrated although there are still many differences in the economic performance and the labor market. Moreover, the EU has become an increasingly important player on the world stage, and its common external action has been extended to new areas, immigration being one such area. All of this means that the policies and the measures taken by the Member States in this new field of EU diplomacy, no longer exclusively affect their national situation, but can have repercussions on other Member States and on the EU as a whole. Even since 1999 the European Union worked on developing a common policy, when for the first time, its competence in this field was openly recognized by the EC Treaty. A series of instruments and common policies were set up, which address immigration both in terms of its internal and its external dimensions.

Required will be a common view on the policy which is based on past achievements and which aims to ensure a more coherent framework available for future action to Member States and the European Union. The added value of the EU will be reflected in providing European instruments where they are needed and in providing the right framework for achieving coherence where Member States act on their skills. Transparency and trust are now more than necessary in order that this common view should be effective and deliver results (8). »

I.2 Migration: A challenge and an opportunity?

While to a certain extent immigration may help to alleviate the challenges arising from the aging population, immigration will play a pivotal role in helping to address future workforce and qualifications shortages, as well as to increase the potential economic growth of the EU (4). And prosperity could also be considered, completing the current structural reforms. Therefore immigration has become an important factor for both the development of the Lisbon Strategy and especially for developing the »Europe 2020» - Strategy regarding growth and jobs developed by the EU by which it admits the fact that the appropriate management of economic immigration represents an essential element of the EU competitiveness, a fact equally recognized by the European Council in the spring of 2008. Besides the economic potential, immigration can also enrich European societies in terms of cultural diversity. However, the positive potential of immigration can only be accomplished if integration into host societies develops successfully. This requires an approach which does not consider only the benefits for the host society but which also takes into account the interests of immigrants. Europe is and will continue to be a welcoming environment for those to whom was granted the right to settle whether they are immigrants looking for a job, or family members, students or persons in need of international protection. To live up to this challenge, a complex set of problems has to be solved. While access to the labor market is essential to integration, current data show that, overall, the unemployment rate among immigrants is often higher than among the EU nationals although there are big differences between the Member States. Moreover immigrants run the risk of being hired to do precarious work on a position of lower quality or in jobs for which they are over qualified so their skills are not fully used (a waste of the brains). So, this context contributes to making immigrants more likely to accepted labor positions which have not been publicly declared vacant. Non-EU women migrants face particular difficulties in the labor market. Furthermore, the language skills of immigrants and the educational path of their children remain often unsatisfactory, a situation which raises questions about the future of their personal and professional development. »

"Mechanisms are needed based on solidarity between the Member States of the EU for burden sharing and policy coordination. This requires funding for border management control, integration policies and other purposes and therefore there is an impact on public finances of national, regional and local communities. To correctly approach the issue of immigration needed will also be a close cooperation with third countries to deal with situations of mutual interest, including problems caused by the "brain drain" and policy responses such as circular migration. The effective management of immigration also involves the solving of different issues linked to the security of our societies and of immigrants. This requires fighting illegal immigration and related criminal activities, achieving the right balance between personal integrity and concerns about the collective security.. Illegal employment should be solved as it leads to situations of abuse and violation of fundamental rights and freedoms. It also undermines legal immigration and has negative implications with regard to cohesion and fair competition". "This new vision for the further development of common European immigration policy was presented by the Commission in its Communication of 5 December 2007 (5). The European Council Meeting of December 2007 stated that the development of a common immigration policy complementing Member States' policies remains a fundamental priority and asked the Commission to present proposals in 2008. A common immigration policy represents a fundamental priority for the EU (6) if we want to achieve joint success by harnessing the benefits and by solving the challenges. This common policy should aim for a coordinated and integrated approach to the issues of immigration at European, national and regional level, which involves taking into account the different dimensions of the phenomenon and factoring immigration into the main strands of the EU policy - prosperity, solidarity and security. «

"This policy should be developed in partnership and solidarity between Member States and the Commission in response to the call for a renewed political commitment on immigration, launched by the European Council of December 2007". "Policy should be based on a set of common principles politically binding, supported at the highest political level and enforced by common actions". "The implementation of these measures should be pursued through a specific common methodology and through a monitoring mechanism". This policy should be based on the universal values of human dignity, freedom, equality and solidarity espoused by the EU, including full respect for the Charter of Fundamental Rights and the European Convention on Human Rights. Based on its fundamental humanitarian traditions, Europe will manifest continued solidarity with the refugees and the persons in need for protection (7). "The renewed EU agenda for access, opportunity and solidarity will be presented by the Commission and it will encourage an integrated and inclusive society, where opportunities are open to all . It will provide new instruments that will help develop the new common immigration policy". « The common immigration policy will be based on 10 principles grouped into three categories, respectively prosperity, security and solidarity".

I.3. The immigrants and the free movement. The reality and the perception of the dimension and the significance of migration in the EU member countries

It may be that the nationals of third countries who migrate to the EU could have a negative impact on the free movement within the EU. "The perception of migrants by the public opinion is negative, while the reality does not necessarily match this perception» (1) (Explanation brought forth by Antonio Vitorino, Florence Gaube - Specialists in issues of the Middle East and North Africa at the Institute for Security Studies of the EU)."Europeans - argues the specialist - have a clear perception that they are invaded by the increase of the Arab population, when in fact the Arabs are not currently (2013) more than 1% of the European population. Powerful anti-migration forces occurred. This reality should be openly discussed and this perception should realistically be introduced into public debate. Eliminating this false perception would probably represent the first step to change the public discourse on migration. Continuous transparency regarding migration is necessary but the demographic argument, the only argument for migration, is not sufficient to convince the public opinion in EU member countries. Political courage represents a preamble for an attack targeting the distortion between reality and public perception. A special role is, of course, held by the media. It is necessary that erroneous perception should be eliminated as it determines priorities which are politically appropriate. A striking example is - as Antonio Vitorino states - the emphasis put on border control while the vast majority of illegal immigrants are the people who remain in the host country after the expiration of their visa and not those who "illegally entered" the country.

II. THE EU DIPLOMACY ON MIGRATION AND THE CHALLENGES FOR THE 21ST CENTURY

II.1 The policy on immigration and the diplomacy regarding attractiveness and security in the EU. Challenges for the UE

It is necessary to strengthen the link between the internal and external dimensions of the immigration policy. The dialogue with third countries should not be limited to security but should include all aspects related to immigrants. The global dimension of migration includes:

A. The problems of neighboring countries which means the transition of Arab countries and the crisis in Ukraine, and

B. EU relations with third countries that are fundamental to the balance between security and attractiveness.

Today, but especially in the near future, the challenges of the EU will have numerous reasons, among which:

1. The struggle for resources is becoming essential. The most important resource is the human being.

2. The EU has an aging population; the forecasts show that by 2060, the EU must relate to rationalizing legal immigration regarding its economic dimension.

3. The E.U. needs, primarily, a highly qualified workforce, starting from the goal: "EUROPE 2020", a knowledge-based society, involving a more active academic and research policy.

4. In the same time, the EU also needs a workforce specialized in caring for people with limited mobility, given the aging population and increasing its longevity.

In the field of policies, both domestic and especially foreign ones, EU competences are shared with the Member States. Economic immigration represents the responsibility of the Member States. The unification of families is a EU matter. What can be done without infringing the Treaties is to coordinate legal immigration entry policies. Migration issues have two sides: one rational - related to the necessity of labor, the population forecasting showing that by 2050 the EU would need 50 million immigrants to compensate for the aging population to sustain economic growth, which is unrealistic (some say), on the other side there is the emotional factor. The European population considers that there are too many immigrants, Arabs in particular. Thus needed will be a realistic assessment of the actual needs of the member countries regarding the workforce, and which would be the absorption capacity of the European labor market and of the Member States. There appeared strong anti-immigration forces and even anti-EU forces. The strategic guidelines of the EC meeting in June 2014 are not sufficiently prospective for the following 10 to 15 years, they only reflecting 5 years. Legal migration, illegal migration and international protection must be inter-connected on the migration policy. The EC emphasized that the immigration policy is influenced only by international conflicts and by demographic problems in Europe. There are other factors such as the increase of the middle class, urbanization and digitization which makes people to be more mobile. Suggested was the development of smart borders ("smart border package") which uses modern technology to make the border control simpler and more effective. The objective of smart borders comes to facilitate the regulated entry of people of good faith and their registration; thus allowing them entry and exit while providing information on the validity of the visa, and overstay; in this regard the FRONTEX and the EUROSUR systems on surveillance should be strengthened.

III. IMMIGRATION AND GLOBAL FORECASTS REGARDING THE POPULATION OF EUROPEAN COUNTRIES (EU) IN THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE 21ST CENTURY

III.1. Demographic, economic, social and cultural consequences. The issue of immigrants 'integration

According to UN and EU estimates (Eurostat and World Population Prospect) the population of some European countries (EU member states) will decrease in the 21st century perspective. Thus, the French population will decrease from around 60 million today to 55 million by 2050, and to 43 million at the end of the 21st century, and the number of people of French ethnic orientation will decrease much more. The population of the United Kingdom will decrease from 60 million today to 53 million in 2050 and 45 million in 2100. The largest part of other European countries will have to face a worse situation regarding the issue of the population. Germany's population counts currently 82 million and is estimated to reach 61 million in 2050 and 32 million by 2100. The decline estimated to affect Italy and Spain will be more drastic. Italy which currently counts 57 million will probably reach 37 million in 2050 and 15 million in 2100. Spain also will also have to face a decline, from the 39 million individuals registered today to 28 million in 2050 and 12 million in 2100. To note would be that these data disregard the number of immigrants in the near future. The forecasting for the countries in Eastern Europe are even worse. Thus Ukraine is estimated to register a decrease in its population of 43%, Bulgaria of 34%, Latvia and Lithuania will probably register a decrease of 25-27%, Russia of 22%, Croatia of 20%, Hungary of 18% and the Czech Republic of 17%. The same sources state that only Cyprus, Luxembourg and Switzerland will register a slight increase in population during this period.

This decrease in the European population represents only one dimension of the demographic problem. The other side draws attention to the aging of the European population (3). This way, the percentage of the breeding population decreases, and so will also the number of employable people. For the first time in the human history in large countries such as Italy, Germany, and Spain the population over the age of 60 represents a higher percentage compared to the population under the age of 20. Another factor to be considered would be the fact that the slow decrease of the population in France and the UK is the result of the high rate of black and North Africans immigrant in France and the Pakistani immigrants or the ones from the Caribbean for the United Kingdom.

This decrease in population due to the low level of fertility in the European countries as well as at global level would lead to a stabilization of the global population around 8 billion in 2100. In the regions neighboring Europe, such as North Africa, the sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East are not estimated decreases in populations in these regions. According to the same sources the population of certain countries will increase. According to forecasts Turkey's population will increase to 100 million in 2050, Egypt's population will increase to 114 million, in the population in Algeria and Morocco will each reach 45 million inhabitants. The share of Europe's population at global level in 2050 will be of 4 - 5%. UN projections for the period following the year 2100 show that Europe's population could further drop, potentially reaching 59 million by the year 2300. Some countries in Europe could end up counting only 5% of the current population and countries like Russia and Italy only 1% of the current population, actually less than currently Torino in Italy or Novosibirsk in Russia. These are predictions that do not take into account a number of changes that may occur as a result of technical and scientific progress, epidemics or natural disasters that could have consequences that can not be provided in this period. The consequences of new techniques on the productivity work cannot be foreseen, and neither is how much manpower will be needed to ensure the functioning of the economic systems and the ensuring of living conditions.

Some studies on the population dynamics in Europe and the neighboring continents show that if Europe survives and holds some degree of importance in the foreseeable future, it will certainly be a black continent just like the current African one, and from a religious perspective it will be Islamic by the end of this century. The forecasting are based on the difference regarding fertility issues between Europe and Africa and the Middle East, on the other hand the extended need for immigration in Europe.

According to a different scenario presented in a UN report entitled "Replacement Migration; Is It a Solution to Declining and Aging Population?" it is shown that at least 700 million immigrants would be required to rebalance age and manpower in Europe by 2050. The problem is that it is not stated where this population of immigrants should come from, provided that even the most populous countries (China and India) do not have this possibility given the aging population and declining birthrates in these states as well. Currently Europe's problem is unemployment which affects also the youth in the immigrant population and other young people in this population group do not have the qualifications required to work in European countries. Many immigrants, of the second generation, have no possibility to access to proper education and higher qualifications in Europe. On the other hand it should be considered if these young people of immigrant parents would have agreed to work for the welfare of an aging population who they do not identify with. Of course Europe needs immigrants, but it would be equally important to know if they exist and if they have the necessary qualifications

III.2. Immigrants and their national structure. Opportunities and risks

After the 2nd World War there was a development of the phenomenon of migration. In the first part most of them were from within Europe: Italians, Yugoslavians moving to Germany, Spanish and Portuguese who went to France. They did not settle in the countries of destination but after a period they returned to their countries, once the economic situation became better. A new wave of immigrants occurred with the collapse of the colonial empires. Many Indians, Pakistanis and individuals from other freed Asian countries came to Europe especially to England, France and other former colonial powers; the North Africans and the Turks went to France and Germany in particular, less to other developed European countries. During this time it was thought that this was a temporary phenomenon and that these "guest" workers, as they were called, would return to the countries of origin. It was estimated that at least half of the 3-4 million "guest" workers had returned, in time. Others remained, legally or illegally. Thus were formed major outer-community groups of individuals from Afro-Asian countries and the Middle East. In this period the work permit was introduced as a rule, a fact that led to a diminution of the number of immigrant workers in Europe. In this period there also occurred the activity of bringing immigrants illegally. Illegal immigrants from the Middle East came through the Balkans to Italy by crossing the Mediterranean from North Africa or to Spain. Then there appeared the category of people who requested asylum in European countries. In 1983 were over 80,000 already asking for asylum, and in 1992 they already reached the number of 700,000. Many of those with asylum requests were from Muslim countries. Those calling for political asylum were supporters of Islam. Many of ones asking for asylum were part of terrorist groups. The Schengen Agreement signed in 1985, stimulated immigration in terms of the abolition of border controls which made possible the passage from one country to another without control. Germany was by far the favorite country of asylum-seekers. Between 1990 and 2002 it had already reached 2 million. Germany was followed closely by the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands and the Northern countries.

Regarding the Muslim communities, the figures for 2006 were: in the case of France - 5,5 million, for Germany 3.6 million, 1.6 million in the case of England, for the Netherlands - 1.0 million, in Italy 0.9 million, 0.5 million in Greece, 0.5 million in Belgium, Austria and Switzerland 0,4 million each, and 0.3 million in Denmark. These figures are estimates of international organizations. Some estimates provide even higher figures. Regarding the Muslim countries, most Muslim communities are to be found in Turkey - up to 50% of those coming from the Middle. The most important part of the Muslims communities is to be found in France and Spain and they are of North African origin. The Muslim community living in the European countries speak various languages, especially Arabic. As it is known, religion is really quite important for the Muslim communities, a fact that leads to extending the number of Mosques. Currently in France there are over 2,000 Mosques. In Germany they exceed 2500 in number as well as in the UK. Some are very large. Thus, in the United Kingdom, in London there is a Mosque which can receive up to 70,000 people. It has also been stated that England had more Muslim practitioners compared to the Anglican church. The Muslim immigrants in European countries are basically concentrated in the big cities and in the former industrial centers. Currently, more than half of the Muslims in Western and Central Europe were born there. Compared to the European population the Muslims are quite young because of the high birth rates. The calculations of various organizations show that 55% of new-borns in Europe belong to immigrant parents in Muslim communities. The serious problem in the Western Europe societies is related to the integration into the European society of these generations born in Europe. But it was found that these young people do not integrate well in the host countries. The arguments they raise are related to their material condition. Generally, the 2nd and the 3rd generations are poor. Two thirds of the British Muslims are part of families with low incomes, inadequate overcrowded (many members in small spaces) housing, then reflected can be the status of ghettos, unemployment especially among young people, lack of professional training, racial prejudices brought to Muslims They also face a decreased social and professional mobility that leads to the marginalization of Muslim communities. Few are those who have succeeded in business in the European countries. It is believed that racism and xenophobia are included - as various studies would highlight - among the causes and factors relating to the poor academic results of young Muslims.

IV. MIGRATION AND ECONOMIC GROWTH AT EU LEVEL AND IN THE MEMBER STATES IN THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE 21ST CENTURY

IV.1. The aging of the population and the knowledge-based society in Europe in the view of migration

1. Regarding the EU strategy in terms of globalization and advancement towards the knowledge - based economy and the dynamics of the working population in Europe, the studies point out that the EU has a growth deficit. According to the estimates for the global economy regarding the following 10 years it can be stated that:

- Europe is estimated to register a growth of 1.5% per year

- USA is estimated to register a growth of 2.5% - 3% per year

- The emerging countries (namely BRICS) are estimated to register a growth of 5 - 6% per year

Thus, it can be stated, a 4 times higher growth in emerging markets than in Europe (EU), 2 times higher in the US than in Europe. In these conditions Europe will be lagging behind. The question is why. The situation can be explained by various causes. A qualified response brings forth structural reasons. There are also circumstantial reasons, especially the huge debt of the EU member states, debt which got accumulated before and during the crisis. This way, it is difficult for the EU to jump-start the economies of the member countries. The main cause is structural. If considering the percentage of 1,5% increase in the following 10 years this corresponds to a 2% contribution incumbent to productivity as it was forecasted the productivity growth dynamics in Europe, a contribution of -0,5% per annum due to the decrease of the working population . So, the 2% of productivity is reduced by 0.5% based on the negative contribution of the working population, expected to reach 1.5%. Those -0.5% come from the degradation of Europe's demographic phenomenon. It shares this fate with Japan and especially Russia. The moments of the working population's contraction are not conducive to economic growth. It is known that, for many reasons, the aging societies are less dynamic, less entrepreneurial, less prone to risk, these being among the forces that support dynamic market economies.

- Another issue impacting on the growth is the energy related one that Europe does not master well. This issue will weigh heavily in the case of the European competitiveness in the coming 10 years.

- Third, there is the position held by Europe regarding the technological border which is definitely to emerge in the following 10 years. This is especially seriously impacting as the new Europe (EU) has established as primary goal setting up the knowledge-based economy, putting thus emphasis on the brain, on the quality of knowledge. The scarcer the young population in Europe becomes, the heavier it will weigh regarding the future growth based on knowledge. Therefore the EU legislation in the field of migration (see the Blue Card Directive) facilitates entry and residence of non-EU citizens employed in jobs that require high qualifications, to attract a specific category of migrants. The legislators agreed on and passed in 2014 a compromise text for the Directive on seasonal workers and on the negotiations regarding the persons transferred within the same company. Debates have also considered the set of rules and norms for non-EU citizens who come to the EU for studies, for scientific research and for other exchanges. The Member States should make sure that action is taken to promote and support the integration of immigrants. Immigrants need to be able to develop their full potential in an environment in which fundamental rights are fully respected and where they can actively take part in the life of the community/society.

- The external dimension of the EU migration policy and more specifically, the cooperation with countries outside the EU on migration issues is a clear priority for the EU. EU systematically puts immigration on the agenda of its political, economic and social dialogue with countries outside the EU.

- Here we would mention the following:

- There were held strategic dialogues on migration issues with a number of key partners such as China, India, Russia and the USA, as well as in the framework of regional initiatives such as the EU-Africa partnership on migration, mobility and employment: The Rabat Process, the Eastern Partnership, the "Roads of the Silk", and the cooperation EU-CELAC. Such dialogues address various dimensions of the migration phenomenon such as the link between migration and development, issues related to mobility, ways of reducing illegal migration, readmission and human trafficking.

- The EU participates in discussions on this issue in the various international fora and maintains cooperative relations with various international actors who are active in the field of migration.

The impact of migration on development was the theme of the UN high-level dialogue on international migration and development in 2013 during which they emphasized the EU approach on migration and development. The common strategy "Africa-EU" in 2007 which launched the Africa-EU strategic partnership defined the long-term policy orientations between the two continents, based on a shared vision and common principles. The strategic partnership includes the following objectives: 1. improving the EU-Africa political partnership, 2. Accomplishing the millennium development objectives in all African countries by the year 2015 and 3. improving the operability of multilateralism.

The strategy consists of 8 "thematic partnerships" including issues on energy, climate change, migration, mobility and employment, and other objectives. Each of these "partnerships" is open for a large range of actors which means that here can be included: the EU Commissions and the African Union (AU) Commissions, the Council of Ministers of the EU and AU, the General Secretariat of the EU Council, EU Member States and the African States, the African and European Parliament, local and decentralized authorities, African and European civil society actors, African sub-regional organizations, research institutes, international organizations and the private sector.

CONCLUSIONS

This paper addresses an extremely current issue, the central objective of the paper bringing into focus the problem of migration, amid globalization, demographic trends, those transformations of the contemporary society, with obvious repercussions on the EU mainly, but also on other countries at global level, the effects behind pronounced at national, regional and local level.

The secondary objectives of the paper focus on the issue of migration in four major directions, which translated into the four main parts of the analysis. The first part examines the position of the European migration policies within the internal and external policies of the EU, bringing into question also Romania's position on this topic. Since the effects of migration are felt primarily at EU level, appropriate was the analysis of migration in terms of solidarity among the Member States, considering the issues of immigrants and the freedom of movement, carefully assessing the reality and the perception of the dimension and, respectively, the significance of migration in the EU member States. The paper draws attention to the need for workforce, and thus to improving the conditions regarding the admission of immigrants on professional considerations, but at the same time drawing attention to the potential for establishing partnerships on mobility and to more active integration policies.

The second part pursues a review of the EU diplomacy on immigration as a challenge for the 21st century, analyzing the immigration policy and the diplomacy of the attractiveness and the safety of member states, pointing out the need to strengthen the link between the internal and the external dimension of the immigration policy.

Part three brings into question the global outlook on the population in the EU countries, considering the consequences of the demographic, economic, social and cultural or immigrant integration issue, the existing background of the aging or the decreasing European population.

The last part of the paper considers the demographic phenomenon on the potential growth in EU Member States on short and medium term.

Footnote

Note:

[1] figure of 3.8% represents the percentage of the EU population which consists of third-country nationals: it should be noted that most of them are not themselves immigrants but descendants of immigrants who have acquired citizenship of the country of residence.

[2] Eurostat, statistics on population and social conditions.

[3] Eurostat population forecastings, EUROPOP 2008, the convergence scenario based on 2008, the convergence year 2050.

[4] See the document of the Economic Policy Committee and of the European Commission (DG ECFIN), (2006), "The impact of aging on public expenditure: projections for the EU-25 on pensions, health care, long term care, education and unemployment security transfers (2004-2050)", European Economy, Special Reports No 1, 2006.

[5] COM (2007) 780 final.

[6] Although the development of this policy must go hand in hand with the gradual removal of the existing transitional arrangements restricting the free movement of nationals of EU Member States, this communication only addresses issues related to immigration of third-country nationals and does not address issues with intra -EU or intra-regional movement of EU nationals.

[7] This aspect will be further developed when the second phase of the Common European Asylum System will be considered. See the "Policy Plan on Asylum: an integrated approach to protection across the EU", presented together with this Communication - COM (2008) 360.

[8] Presidency Conclusions, Brussels, 13-14 March 2008, paragraph 14.

[9] "Immigration Profiles" will bring together in a structured manner all the information needed to promote an evidence-based approach to migration management. Labor market needs will be a central aspect of these profiles. Besides collecting information on the current situation of the labor market, on unemployment, on labor demand and supply, the profiles will aim to identify potential skills' shortages in sectors and occupations. Immigration profiling will allow the EU and the Member States to launch correlation systems of labor within the EU and with third countries. Immigration profiles will also contain information on the qualifications available among transnational communities, information on the composition of migration flows, both in terms of gender and age, and in terms of in-coming and out-going financial flows related to migration, including the amount of money sent by migrants.

[10] In 2003, the European Parliament and the European Council adopted Regulation (EC) no. 859/2003 (OJ L 124, 20.5.2003) extending the provisions of Regulation (EEC) No. 1408/71 to nationals of third countries (1) legally residing in the EU and (2) who are in the trans-border situation. In July 2007 the Commission adopted a proposal regarding extending the provisions of Regulation 883/04, which will replace Regulation (EEC) 1408/71 to nationals of third countries (1) legally residing in the EU and (2) who are in the trans-border situation - COM (2007) 439 final.

[11] See the "Policy Plan on Asylum: an integrated approach to protection across the EU", presented together with this Communication - COM (2008) 360.

[12] Undeclared work and illegal employment of EU nationals are issues that should also be addressed by the Member States. Aspects of the problem of the internal side of the EU are not presented in this document.

References

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