GUWAHATI, April 10 - With illegal immigration a big issue for Assam and some other states, the European Union (EU) believes that the 28-member countries of the union and India can work together towards formulation of global principles and regulations on migration and that the two sides can be partners in formulating the United Nations� Global Compact on Migration.
This was stated by Tomasz Kozlowski, Ambassador of the European Union to India, here today.
To a query during a press conference here regarding similarities between migration from Bangladesh to Assam and from North African and West Asian countries to EU nations and on ways about learning from each other�s experiences, Kozlowski said, �Migration is an extraordinary challenge. Europe has been facing this problem in a big way since 2015. We are not in a position to accept all migrants. We are trying to look at similarities (between migration to Europe and to India). Migration is a phenomenon present in many parts of the world.�
He said the United Nations is currently having discussions about having a Global Compact on Migration. �We need a global solution to migration. The EU is interested in closer cooperation with India with regard to formulation of the Global Compact,� he added.
Kozlowski was on a two-day visit to Assam which ended today. The Ambassador participated at EU Day events organised by Assam Don Bosco University on April 9 and at IIT Guwahati today.
The Ambassador said that EU is providing technical assistance to first ever solar park in Assam. �Under the EU-India Clean Energy and Climate Partnership, the EU has provided technical assistance to the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) in the preparation of a detailed project report for the 70-MW solar park of Amguri in Assam. This 70 MW solar park marks the debut of the northeastern states in solar parks development,� he said.
He said that under the EU-India Clean Energy and Climate Partnership, an EU-funded technical project is supporting the development and grid integration of solar parks in India, based on EU best practices modified for local conditions as a part of Green Energy Corridor II project.
The Ambassador said that students, researchers and faculty members from this region can benefit from opportunities available under EU-funded programmes for higher education and research. He said 87 students and researchers from the Northeast, including 72 from Assam, have so far benefitted under such programmes.
Identifying India as a �natural partner�, Kozlowski said the country will remain one of the main trade destinations for the EU. He said the EU and India have decided to step up their association in handling radical and terror elements in both the regions as well as at the global level.
