The European Union (EU) list, criticised by human rights groups, would allow "member states to process asylum claims of nationals from countries on the list in an accelerated procedure, on the basis that their claims are unlikely to be successful," the Commission said in a statement.

Despite a 38% drop in illegal migrant entries to the EU last year, to the lowest level since 2021 immigration remains a highly sensitive issue among the bloc's 27 member states.

The list of "safe countries of origin", which includes Bangladesh, Colombi a, India, Kosovo, Morocco, Egypt and Tunisia, can be expanded or reviewed over time.

The concept of safe countries in asylum procedures "may lead to discrimination among refugees based on their country of nationality and detract from an individualised assessment," said Hussein Baoumi, a Foreign Policy Specialist at Amnesty International in Brussels.

--Reuters--