On Wednesday 29 April, Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, published its risk analysis for 2020, where it reviews 2019 and calls on Member States to remain vigilant with regard to migration trends and status changes, as recent events at the Greek-Turkish border have demonstrated. It also calls on Member States to be vigilant with regard to new forms of crime at the external borders (firearms trafficking, false documents, etc.)
The report begins by noting that, in 2019, the total number of reported detections of illegal border-crossing along the external borders fell to the lowest level since 2013, at 141,846 detections between border crossing points compared with 149,117 in 2018. There was confirmation of the fall in the number of arrivals in the Central Mediterranean, but arrivals started to rise again in the Eastern Mediterranean, the Aegean and the Western Balkans. Malta and Cyprus have also recently said that they are under renewed pressure.
In 2019, the number of actual returns was lower than in the previous year, at 138,860 returns completed, compared with 147,815 in 2018.
Member States also issued more refusals of entry to their territories in 2019, but during the same period also detected more people with irregular residence status - about 40,000 more than in 2018.
In its report, Frontex states that 2020 will be a pivotal year for the its new expanded mandate, which was introduced in 2019 and which should, in time, provide the agency with additional staff: up to 10,000 agents by 2027, or by 2024, as Ursula von der Leyen wants.
The Agency is currently at the recruitment phase, working with Member States on the methodology to use for the external border intervention ‘integrated plans’. Issues such as the border guards’ uniforms, which will include the ‘Frontex’ logo, are also part of the preparations.
To consult the risk analysis, go to: https://bit.ly/3cZu0pw (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)