Asylum applications registered in European countries have surged by almost 30 percent during the first half of 2023, compared to last year, says the EU’s Asylum Agency.
About 519,000 asylum applications were lodged in the 29 countries between January and the end of June, the agency said, estimating that “on current trends, applications could exceed one million by the end of the year”.
The main applications came from Syrians, Afghans, Venezuelans, Turks and Colombians, accounting for 44pc of requests in total, euronews reported.
Applications in the first half of the year are at their highest for this time of the year since 2015-2016.
During the period, an influx of refugees into Europe, in particular sparked by the conflict in Syria, saw asylum applications reach 1.3 million in 2015 and 1.2 million in 2016.
This year so far Germany has received the most applications: 30 percent of the total, almost twice as many as Spain (17pc) and France (16pc).
As a result of this increase, many European countries are under pressure to process applications, with the number of cases awaiting a decision rising by 34 percent, compared to 2022.
Around 41 percent of the applications have received a positive response. Some 4 million Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion are currently benefiting from temporary protection in EU.
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