Historically Europe has been a net exporter of people since the middle ages as the Great Powers expanded into Africa, The Indian subcontinent, and other parts of the world. People moved out in search of wealth and land. The Age of Empires drew to a close and now it is mostly the highly skilled that leave Europe to other developed nations. People all over the world look at the developed nations as either a land of opportunity or safety from persecution & oppression.
In the last fifty years the pattern of migration has been inwards towards Europe and increasingly over the two decades the changing demographics have become a major political issue. Each country in Europe has its own views on the issue of immigration. The further east one goes the more relaxed they are as they know that Western Europe is the desired destination of most immigrants. Turkey and Greece are not popular countries for immigration so they serve as rather open gateways into Europe.
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