Migration: EU finalises multi-billion deals with Morocco and Jordan
The British newspaper Financial Times has revealed that the European Union is about to conclude multi-billion euro deals with Jordan and Morocco to strengthen cooperation to limit migration flows to EU member states. This information comes from statements by Dubravka Šuica, the new European Commissioner for the Mediterranean.
The newspaper highlights that in the face of the rise of far-right parties and anti-immigration rhetoric in Europe, the European Union is increasingly turning to countries in the Middle East and North Africa. In exchange for financial support, these partners are called upon to strengthen their border control measures and curb departures to the European continent.
These new efforts are part of a strategy of reinforced partnership, while previous agreements with Egypt and Tunisia have drawn criticism over human rights abuses in these two countries. Morocco, as a key transit country, is already one of the main beneficiaries of European funding, while Jordan bears the burden of more than a million Syrian refugees, a considerable economic strain on the small kingdom.
Commissioner Dubravka Šuica said the deal with Amman was “almost ready” and would be signed by King Abdullah in Brussels in late January or early February. She said: “Jordan is close to finalising this deal. We want them to be with us, and they want us to be with us.”
The comments came as European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen visited Jordan on Monday. “I look forward to welcoming King Abdullah to Brussels in early 2025. Together, we will launch a strengthened strategic partnership between the European Union and Jordan,” von der Leyen said. She added that the European Union “will work closely with Jordan and our partners to ensure a political transition in Syria,” referring to the ouster of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad by Islamist rebels.
In 2023, the European Union concluded a €255 million deal with Tunisia, followed this year by another worth €7.4 billion with Egypt, despite warnings from human rights groups about political repression in those countries.
According to the Financial Times, the agreements currently being negotiated with Jordan and Morocco are expected to be “similar” in scope to the one concluded with Egypt. They will include economic and energy projects as well as specific measures to reduce migration flows to Europe.
Jordan currently hosts the second-largest proportion of refugees in the world relative to its population, the majority of whom are from Syria, according to data from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. As for Morocco, it has maintained close cooperation with the European Union for many years to combat irregular immigration. The European Commission says Rabat received more than €2.1 billion between 2014 and 2022 to support these efforts.
However, these partnerships have been the subject of recurring criticism from human rights activists and some European politicians, particularly those linked to the agreements concluded with Tunisia. Tunisian President Kaïs Saïd is accused of repressing the political opposition and civil society, while the country’s authorities are singled out for their management of migrants and arbitrary expulsions. Tunis strongly denies these accusations, denying any violation of migrants’ rights.
Faced with these criticisms, Dubravka Šuica defended the necessity of these agreements. “These countries were on the verge of collapse, and we had to help them,” she explained. However, she called for vigilance, stressing that partner countries “must respect the criteria set out in these agreements,” including the requirement to respect human rights. “Not a single cent will be paid to these countries until they meet the human rights criteria,” she concluded.