Asylum applications in the European Union continue to rise after a major hike last year

By RAF CASERT
Associated Press

BRUSSELS (AP) — Asylum applications in the European Union continued to rise in the first half of 2023 following a major hike last year, pressuring limited hosting capacities and moving the issue up the political agenda in many nations. The European Union Agency for Asylum says applications in the 27-nation bloc plus Switzerland and Norway rose 28% in the first half of the year compared to the same period last year. In all of 2022, applications increased 53%. The agency says that “Based on current trends, applications could exceed 1 million by the end of 2023” in a region of about 460 million people.