Fælles om nationale løsninger i forbindelse flygtninge- og migrantkrisen: En analyse af EU’s flygtninge- og migrantpolitik og den nationale præferencedannelse i Danmark og Tyskland i forbindelse med flygtninge- og migrantkrisen

Abstrakt

This Master’s Thesis is an attempt to discover and explain the European Union’s (EU) Refugee and Migrant Policy in the light of the European refugee and migrant crisis, which has been a reality for the EU and it’s member states since the beginning of 2015 and up till now. Furthermore, it deals with Danish and German national preferences developed through the crisis and how this has affected a common EU approach to address the situation on European soil.
In 2015, more than 1.1 million asylum seekers, both refugees and migrants, crossed the European borders, pushing the EU’s Refugee and Migrant Policy to an edge, while challenging the cooperation between EU’s member states, as different national interests appeared to be difficult unify. From this perspective of the situation, and because it has been debated to a very large extend, it is relevant to analyse what kind of possibilities and limitations the EU has had to address the crisis with a common European approach. As part of the European integration process, the supranational level that the Commission holds is in particular relevant to include in this Master’s Thesis. This is due to the fact that it is arguable whether the Commission encourages cooperation and compromise between the member states and the EU or it lacks penetration. The role of the member states, constituting the second half of the analysis, is equally relevant to include in this matter. National policies and national popular support is essential to bear in mind in relation to the development of the EU. Therefore, national preferences in Denmark and Germany are reviewed as two examples of what has happened in the EU member states during the crisis and addressed in connection with the EU’s attempt to address the situation. On one hand, Denmark has, with its political opt-out, the possibility to act more freely without the EU’s involvement, which has been the country’s strategy from the beginning, for example by saying no to binding refugee quotes proposed by the European Commission to assist the most burdened countries, Greece and Italy. On the other hand, Germany has from the beginning of the crisis tried to gather the European Countries to address the crisis together. Germany has received critique for being too open towards the flow of refugees and migrants and dominating the common EU agenda. Due to these factors and the game changing character of the crisis, this master’s thesis attempts to clarify the situation. Because of the crisis’ game changing character, it is relevant to look more into.