The interior ministers of the European Union (EU) will discuss “innovative” and controversial measures to increase deportations of irregular migrants and asylum seekers that were rejected. In addition, they will consider the creation of return centers in countries outside the EU.
The discussion on migration intensified due to the growing political pressure of the extreme right in several European countries, which brought the issue of displacement to a priority on the political agenda.
During a ministerial working lunch, the bloc will explore the “viability of innovative solutions in the field of returns, in particular the return center concept,” indicated a background note.
The meeting will take place a few months after the implementation of a comprehensive reform of EU asylum policies, which will come into force in June 2026. Despite this measure, more than half of the member states still consider that the current reform is not sufficient and asked the European Commission to consider options more drastic.
Finally, Jacob Kirkegaard, an analyst at the Bruegel think tank, highlighted a growing number of governments are eager to show that they are trying to “withdraw to migrants rejected from the streets in one way or another.”
AE