Swiss president regrets tabling of refugee decision

Swiss President Simonetta Sommaruga expressed disappointment at EU interior ministers‘ postponement of a permanent decision to distribute refugees across European countries. The ministers met in an emergency session in Luxembourg on Monday. Sommaruga, who attended the talks as a representative of Swiss asylum policies, said that “I have argued for a [refugee] distribution system for years” and that such a system is the only way to bring about real asylum reform with solidarity. The gathering of interior ministers decided to table a permanent decision on a refugee distribution system until another meeting on October 8 and 9. They did agree to re-settle some 40,000 asylum seekers from Italy and Greece but waited to decide on quotas and details of distributing another 120,000 until the October meeting. The ministers also agreed the nations taking on the burden of relocation would receive a lump sum of 6,000 euros (CHF6,572) per refugee. Meanwhile, several European ...