Just as free movement and equal treatment were of crucial importance for the development of the European Community so common policies on immigration and asylum are indispensable for the deepening of the European Union. This book summarizes against the backdrop of the developing overall goals of the European Community and the European Union the outcome of European policy-making in these fields. Furthermore the book contains the important texts concluded by the Member States in the field of immigration and asylum both intergovernmentally and within the Third Pillar of the Maastricht Treaty. The commentary analyses the contents of each document in turn by reference to the existing international human rights obligations of the Member States.