site.btaBulgaria Has Met 2 Per Cent of Its EU Asylum-Seeker RelocationTargets

Bulgaria Has Met 2 Per Cent of Its EU Asylum-Seeker Relocation Targets

Brussels, March 2 (BTA correspondent Nikolay Jeliazkov) - Bulgaria has met 2 per cent of its EU targets for relocation of asylum seekers, according to figures released by the European Commission on Thursday.

By February 28, 2017, 29 applicants have been effectively relocated to Bulgaria from Greece out of 310 formally pledged and a commitment to receive 831 until the end of the year, which translates as 3 per cent of the legal commitment.

No relocations from Italy have taken place so far, but 140 have been formally pledged and a legally foreseen commitment for 471. Fifty applications have been submitted from Turkey under the "1:1 mechanism", but none have been effectively relocated so far.

The Commission made a renewed call on Member States to pick up the pace of relocation to alleviate pressure from Italy and Greece, with few having met their commitments in full.

So far, only Malta and Finland are on track to meet their obligations for both Italy and Greece, whereas Hungary, Austria and Poland are still refusing to participate in the scheme at all, and the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Croatia and Slovakia are doing so on a very limited basis, the Commission said.

"If Member States do not increase their relocations soon, the Commission will not hesitate to make use of its powers under the Treaties for those who have not complied with the obligations stemming from the Council decisions, noting that the legal obligation to relocate those eligible will not cease after September."

***

BTA's Brussels correspondent Nikolay Jeliazkov contributed to this story.