Status: 10/17/2021 2:05 a.m.
The EU asylum authority is registering increasing numbers of asylum seekers, especially from Afghanistan. Most of the applications so far have come from Afghans who are already in Europe.
According to the EU asylum authority EASO, the number of asylum seekers in the European Union is increasing significantly, also due to a new high of Afghan asylum seekers. EASO director Nina Gregori told the newspapers of the Funke media group that in August 2021 the EU states had registered around 56,000 cases of international protection requests. According to earlier EASO data, that is 16,000 applications or 40 percent more than in August 2020.
Gregori said August was the third month with a significantly increasing number of asylum applications. “We are almost at the level of the time before Corona in Europe in terms of the number of asylum applications.” The EASO chief said that around 10,000 asylum applications were submitted by Afghan nationals in the EU in August alone, which is a “record” and an increase of 38 percent compared to July.
Applications mainly from Afghans in Europe
The reasons for the increase are applications made by Afghans after the airlift evacuation from Kabul and asylum applications from Afghans who have lived in Europe for a long time and who have now applied for asylum again. “So far we have not seen any movements by Afghans from Afghanistan coming to Europe,” stressed the EASO chief. But the asylum authorities are closely monitoring the situation in the neighboring countries of Afghanistan, where hundreds of thousands are currently seeking protection. “We have to prepare for a difficult situation of the migration movement from Afghanistan to Europe,” warned Gregori.
Your authority is working closely with the EU Commission and the authorities of the EU member states and is building up reception capacities in the Balkans, for example. In addition, a resettlement program for Afghanistan in the EU is being prepared. “As soon as the European states decide to relocate refugees from Afghanistan to Europe, EASO stands ready to play a key role in the process,” said Gregori.