EU's foreign policy chief says migration could be 'dissolving force' for bloc

By Aysu Bicer

LONDON (AA) - The EU is grappling with a deepening divide over migration policies, which could potentially threaten the cohesion of the bloc, the EU's foreign policy chief warned.

In an interview with the UK-based Guardian newspaper, Josep Borrell underscored the urgent need for a common migration policy, emphasizing the failure to reach a consensus thus far.

Despite the establishment of a shared common external border, the EU remains divided on how to effectively manage migration flows.

Borrell attributed this division to profound cultural and political differences among EU member states.

"There are some members of the European Union that are Japanese-style – we don't want to mix. We don't want migrants. We don't want to accept people from outside. We want our purity," he said, highlighting the resistance to accepting migrants from certain quarters within the EU.

He said that Europe's demographic growth is stagnant, and its aging population is in dire need of labor force replenishment. "Europe needs migrants because we have such low demographic growth. If we want to survive from a labor point of view, we need migrants," Borrell stressed.

While some member states, like Spain, have a long history of welcoming and integrating migrants into their societies, others are resistant to change, he said.