UN Migration Pact After initially agreeing in July 2018, more countries shy away from the Global Compact for Migration
The UN describe the pact as “the first, intergovernmentally negotiated agreement, prepared under the auspices of the United Nations, to cover all dimensions of international migration in a holistic and comprehensive manner”.
The non-binding pact had been agreed by all 193 member states with the one exception being the United States. Deliberations at the UN had lasted more than a year from April 2017 until July 2018 after the United Nations General Assembly had adopted the New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants in 2016.
According to the UN, the pact “comprises 23 objectives for better managing migration at local, national, regional and global levels”.
Since the summer however, several countries have voiced criticism to the agreement. Additional to the United States, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has announced that his country will not be joining the accord.
Times Of Israel: Israel won’t sign global migration pact
Other European countries like Austria, the Czech Republic and Poland have also vowed to withdraw from the deal. The government of Switzerland had initially announced to support the agreement but backtracked after the countries parliament asserted its right to have a final say.
The Australian Prime Minister also rejected the accord claiming it would “undermine Australia’s strong border protection laws and practices.”
The Guardian: Australia refuses to sign UN migration pact
The UN is planning to fully adopt the “Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration” later this year at a conference in December in Marrakesh, Morocco. It remains to be seen if more countries will pull out of the agreement until then.