4 June 2018, in Paris, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) Migration Committee will adopt reports and resolutions on extra-territorial processing of asylum applications, on the external dimension of EU migration policies and on the humanitarian situation in the countries neighbouring Syria. In the preparation of these reports rapporteurs Tineke Strik (the Netherlands, SOC) and Manlio Di Stefano (Italy, NR), will travel to Turkey and Lebanon respectively to gather information on the EU’s external policies and the situation in Syria’s neighbouring countries.

On the 18 May 2018, in Geneva, Switzerland, the Parliamentary network on diaspora policies of the PACE, in co-operation with the International Organization for Migration (IOM), organised the first Annual Forum of the Parliamentary Network on Diaspora Policies. The forum explored diaspora engagement in development, with a focus on the economic pillars of countries of origin and destination. It was a timely opportunity to highlight the importance of engaging with diasporas before the adoption of the new UN Global Compact on Migration in December 2018. A European Diaspora Prize was launched at the Forum, to be awarded to the best projects of diaspora associations around the world. The Forum was opened by the Special Representative on migration and refugees, Tomáš Boček, with a keynote speech by William Lacy Swing, Director General of the IOM.