Archive
EU border externalisation: updates for Iraq and Bangladesh
Two 'action files' obtained by Statewatch update European government ministers on the state of counter-migration spending and projects in Bangladesh and Iraq. Both countries were recently reported by the EU to be cooperating more on deportations of their citizens from Europe, and these 'action files' reveal considerable effort from the EU to further restrict migration. Read More
Deportations: EU considers stepping up visa sanctions after Iraq and Gambia change policies
Iraq and The Gambia have both been targeted with EU visa sanctions due to non-cooperation on deportations, and it seems the measures – or the threat of them – may have led to a new willingness to accept deportation flights from EU states. The instrument was first introduced in 2019, and was first applied to The Gambia in 2021. Now member states are discussing the way ahead for the visa sanctions regime, which may see more threats levelled at third countries deemed insufficiently cooperative with EU deportations. Read More
EU seeking informal agreement to boost deportations to Iraq
The EU is pushing for a “non-binding instrument” with Iraq in order “to increase Iraq’s cooperation on readmission” – that is, acceptance of deportations. Read More
EU: Tracking the Pact: Council reports on externalisation efforts in Iraq and Nigeria
Two documents obtained by Statewatch assess the state of implementation of the Migration Action Plans approved by the European Council for Iraq and Nigeria. There is little or no attention or funding devoted to establishing legal migration pathways, with the focus instead on continued externalisation of border controls and deportations. Read More
Deportations: EU to push for new readmission agreements “using all levers and incentives available”
Council Presidency progress report from 9 June focusses on “operationalisation of the external dimension, including as regards returns”; protection of the external borders; member state solidarity; and “more effective implementation of the Dublin rules”. Read More
EU to pile pressure on Iraq to cooperate with deportations
The EU is aiming to convince Iraqi authorities to withdraw their opposition to accepting deportations of Iraqi nationals, establish “smooth cooperation” on readmission and integrate “return, readmission and cooperation” into broader EU-Iraq cooperation on migration. This initiative fits within a wider punitive mechanism that includes monitoring cooperation on readmission by partner countries to promote the “external dimension of migration management”. Read More
EU: Tracking the Pact: Migration action plans on Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iraq and Nigeria
Eight draft action plans for cooperation with non-EU states on migration and border control were approved by the European Council in October. Documents dealing with Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iraq and Nigeria, published here, show a chosen path of intensified externalisation of EU border management, and very little commitment to legal migration pathways. Read More
EU member states: mixed views on proposed restrictive visa measures to encourage deportation cooperation
Earlier this year the European Commission proposed the possibility of taking measures to restrict the issuance of visas to nationals of three countries - Iraq, The Gambia and Bangladesh - in order to encourage compliance with deportations from the EU. Member states have mixed views on the proposals, a Council document shows. Read More
Lithuanian FM: Belarus using refugees as ‘hybrid weapon against EU’
The Lithuanian foreign minister has said that refugees crossing the border from Belarus are "a hybrid weapon being used against the European Union" to try to force the EU to drop sanctions against Belarus introduced after Lukashenko's election 'victory' last year, and the state's repression of protests that followed. Read More
New world disorder: digital attacks on freedom of assembly
A new report from Access Now examines how digital infrastructure can be blocked, shut down, or monitored to prevent people exercising their right to freedom of assembly. Read More