The clear fall in migrant flows to the European Union since early 2017 compared with the same period in 2016 is especially due to a fall in migrant arrivals in Greece, according to the figures published by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) on Friday 25 August.
Overall, 120,975 migrants have entered the EU since the start of the year – a figure clearly lower than the 271,951 arrivals noted for the same period in 2016.
In the central Mediterranean, 98,072 migrants arrived in Italy between 1 January and 23 August 2017 – a figure a little below that of the previous year (105,071 arrivals). According to the IOM, 13,148 migrants have been intercepted in Libyan waters since the start of the year.
The flow of migrants in the central Mediterranean is thus largely the same this year compared with last year. The Libyan navy, supported by that of Italy, has recently stepped up its efforts to prevent migrants leaving Libyan shores.
The fall in the total number of migrants is especially due to the decline in arrivals in the eastern Mediterranean (14,107 arrivals in Greece and 501 in Cyprus compared with 162,730 and 345 respectively over the same period in 2016).
The migration route making Spain the entry point to the EU from Africa is clearly in greater use, with 8,385 arrivals in 2017 compared with 3,805 arrivals recorded for the same period in 2016. The European Commission is following this latest development but does not want to draw hasty conclusions at this stage, stating that a naval operation is also underway in Spain that benefits from European support.
Overall, 2,410 migrants have died trying to reach the EU since the start of 2017 – a figure that stood at 3,226 in 2016 for the same period.
On Friday, European Parliament President Antonio Tajani travelled to Sicily, where he hailed the work of the Frontex regional task force. He also visited a migrant reception and identification centre ('hotspot') in Pozzallo. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)