Limits of Migration Management

2019 ◽  
pp. 50-82
Author(s):  
Ċetta Mainwaring
Keyword(s):  
State Power ◽  
Member States ◽  
Contested Spaces ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Migration Management ◽  
Migration Flows ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
Migration Crisis ◽  
The Eu

This chapter traces migrant journeys to the edge of Europe and analyses the politics of rescue in the Mediterranean to reveal how the EU contributes to deaths at sea and simultaneously points to these deaths and broader migration flows as a crisis. Following migrant journeys into Europe demonstrates how migrants negotiate passage and challenge sovereignty—a reality often obscured in state narratives. Indeed, through alternating politics of neglect, security, and humanitarianism, southern EU member states have constructed a migration ‘crisis’, depicting long-standing migration flows across the Mediterranean as chaotic and unprecedented. Key to the crisis narrative is the portrayal of migrants either as victims with no agency or as villains endowed with a dangerous, Herculean form of agency. In contrast, migrant accounts reveal a longer journey that begins before the Mediterranean shores and the room for manoeuvre that migrants find and exploit that renders the EU more sieve than fortress. Their experiences illustrate how borders are contested spaces, but also how state inaction contributes to deaths at sea. This chapter contributes to the literature on spectacle by illustrating how both humanitarian and enforcement performances reify state power and construct ‘Europe’ as a discrete unit, a benevolent actor in control of its borders. In doing so, the spectacles cast the Mediterranean as an empty, marginal space and migrants as objects to be governed, as symbols of disorder and chaos. Significantly, the spectacles at sea brand migrants as ‘others’, which allows for their continued marginalization in Europe.

Lilliputian Power? Malta’s ‘Crisis’

2019 ◽  
pp. 121-150
Author(s):  
Ċetta Mainwaring
Keyword(s):  
Small State ◽  
Member States ◽  
Financial Transfers ◽  
Migration Control ◽  
Dublin Regulation ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
Migration Crisis ◽  
Immigration And Asylum ◽  
The Eu

The fifth chapter analyses how in the EU context Malta constructed a crisis around the issue of migration, and how the small state exploited the crisis to secure more EU funds and support. It thus focuses on how member states on the periphery respond to the new responsibility they face as EU migration gatekeepers. In this way, the chapter continues to explore the theme of power at the margins but moves away from the migrant experience to that of a small state at the edge of Europe. The chapter analyses Malta’s strategies at the EU level and its lobbying around particular policies between 2008 and 2016, including (1) the European Pact on Immigration and Asylum, (2) the Schengen Borders Code, (3) the Dublin Regulation, and (4) the Long-Term Residents Directive. The research demonstrates how Malta exerted an unexpected level of influence on EU migration governance by adopting a number of strategies, including emphasizing its small state status, its gatekeeper role, and the ‘crisis’. The most significant success was the expansion of the concept of solidarity within the EU to not only include financial transfers but also the relocation of people. However, this success has come at a price: Malta’s construction and exploitation of a migration crisis reinforces the very emphasis on migration control at the external border that it has resisted. Indeed, the EU framework now shapes Malta’s interests and strategies, encouraging the construction of migration crisis in the Mediterranean and the reduction of migrants to symbols of suffering and disorder.

At Europe's Edge

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ċetta Mainwaring
Keyword(s):  
Critical Role ◽  
Global Politics ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Eu Policies ◽  
Migration Flows ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
Migration Politics ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
The Eu

The Mediterranean Sea is now the deadliest region in the world for migrants. Although the death toll has been rising for many years, the EU response remains fragmented and short sighted. Politicians frame these migration flows as an unprecedented crisis and emphasize migration control at the EU’s external boundaries. In this context, At Europe’s Edge investigates (1) why the EU prioritizes the fortification of its external borders; (2) why migrants nevertheless continue to cross the Mediterranean and to die at sea; and (3) how EU member states on the southern periphery respond to their new role as migration gatekeepers. The book addresses these questions by examining the relationship between the EU and Malta, a small state with an outsized role in migration politics as EU policies place it at the crosshairs of migration flows and controls. The chapters combine ethnographic methods with macro-level analyses to weave together policymaker, practitioner, and migrant experiences, and demonstrate how the Mediterranean is an important space for the contested construction of ‘Europe’. At Europe’s Edge provides rich insight into the unexpected level of influence Malta exerts on EU migration governance, as well as the critical role migrants and their clandestine journeys play in animating EU and Maltese migration policies, driving international relations, and producing Malta’s political power. By centring on the margins, the book pushes the boundaries of our knowledge of the global politics of migration, asylum, and border security.

Eastern EU members hedge bets after Brexit vote

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Member States ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Key Factor ◽  
Migration Crisis ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Visegrad Group ◽  
The Eu

Subject Reactions to Brexit among eastern EU member states. Significance Leaders of the Visegrad Group (V4) of the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia have called for a major institutional overhaul of the EU following the UK vote to leave the EU ('Brexit'). They singled out the EU's handling of the migration crisis as a key factor behind the 'Leave' victory in the UK referendum, and rejected calls from Brussels and several member states for closer integration, instead demanding that powers be repatriated to national capitals to restore citizens' trust and make the EU more democratically accountable. Impacts The V4 will seek to mend relations with Berlin, in the relatively favourable political constellation in Germany before the 2017 elections. V4 governments will aim to hold 'mini-lateral' consultations with the United Kingdom on the terms of its planned exit from the EU. Brexit will dominate Slovakia's EU presidency, with V4 coordinating their responses to help limit the negative fallout for the region.

Shifting Patterns and Reactions—Migration Policy in the New EU Member States

2013 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 466-492 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christiane Barnickel ◽  
Timm Beichelt
Keyword(s):  
Economic Transition ◽  
Migration Policy ◽  
Member States ◽  
Central European ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Transition Paths ◽  
Migration Flows ◽  
Late Socialism ◽  
New Eu Member States ◽  
The Eu

This article presents an analysis of patterns of migration and related policy reactions in the new EU member states. The empiric findings that combine both similarities and dissimilarities between cases are interpreted against two major context factors: (1) democratic and economic transition as well as (2) Europeanization. As it turns out, late socialism and the first stage of transition are more relevant for understanding migration flows, whereas impacts from the EU level help us to make sense of the character of reactions. As expected by Europeanization research, the migration policies of Central European countries do not amount to homogeneous profiles of migration policy. In order to understand differences, we can again refer to different transition paths prevalent in specific cases.

scholarly journals PESCO – MORE SECURITY FOR EUROPE

2018 ◽  
pp. 9-11
Author(s):  
LILIANA BROŽIČ
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Security Policy ◽  
Member States ◽  
The Balkans ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Security Problem ◽  
Foreign And Security Policy ◽  
Migration Crisis ◽  
Defence Cooperation ◽  
The Eu

The end of this year, more precisely 13 December, will mark the first anniversary of the initiation of PESCO. The acronym PESCO is derived from the English name Permanent Security Cooperation. The objective of PESCO is to deepen defence cooperation of EU Member States (EU) in the development of common defence capabilities, joint projects and operational readiness as well as military contribution. In its early beginnings, the EU devoted most of its attention to the economic progress of its member states, which was a very logical goal in the decade following the end of World War II. Later on, the rudiments of security and defence appeared in the form of the Western European Union, Common Foreign and Security Policy and the like. Until the start of war in the former Yugoslavia, the EU did not have a serious need or reason to particularly focus on security. Security policy was just one of the policies that had mainly been present on paper and in various debates. This became particularly obvious in the case of the intensive developments in the Balkans. This case very well tested the functioning of the EU and revealed the need for fundamental changes. One of the results was also an increased engagement in the field of international operations and missions: an observation mission in Georgia, a police and the rule of law mission in Kosovo, mission to assist in the aftermath of a tsunami in Indonesia, a counter-piracy mission in Somalia, and a mission protecting refugees in Mali. The second key milestone in the EU's security and defence engagement was the European migration crisis in 2015. Here, the lack of appropriate policies at the EU level became most evident. More precisely, it revealed the contradictory application of the policies within the EU to member states and their citizens, and to those other countries and their inhabitants who do not benefit from the high values, ethical standards and social advantages when they arrive in unimaginably large numbers. Before the important EU bodies met, consulted, decided and acted, many problems in different areas had been identified. One of the key issues was the security problem. However, there were still many other influences that gave rise to the creation of PESCO. They are discussed by the authors in this issue. Nevertheless, let me just mention that the EU has in some way found itself at a turning point due to the increasingly present Euroscepticism, which was also discussed at this year’s Strategic Forum at Bled.

scholarly journals MIGRATION FACTOR OF TRANSFORMATION OF THE POLITICAL LANDSCAPE IN THE EU COUNTRIES

2020 ◽  
Vol 6(16) (3) ◽  
pp. 116-125
Author(s):  
M. M. Agafoshin
Keyword(s):  
The Political ◽  
Eu Countries ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Political Landscape ◽  
Muslim Countries ◽  
Migration Flows ◽  
Migration Crisis ◽  
The Impact ◽  
European Migration ◽  
The Eu

The paper considers the impact of the European migration crisis, expressed in the intensification of migration flows from the Middle East (Syria and Iraq), on the change EU member States populations’ electoral preferences. The study reviews the elections to the European Parliament in 2009–2019. In addition, the article surveys the attitude of residents of EU countries to immigration and, in particular, to immigration from Muslim countries. The paper proves a tendency to increase the representation of anti-migrant parties, both at the European level and at the countries level.

scholarly journals Intergovernmentalism: Old, Liberal, and New

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amy Verdun
Keyword(s):  
European Integration ◽  
The European Union ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Member States ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Liberal Intergovernmentalism ◽  
Migration Crisis ◽  
National Governments ◽  
The Eu

European integration theories help us understand the actors and mechanisms that drive European integration. Traditionally, European integration scholars used grand theories of integration to explain why integration progresses or stands still. Born out of assumptions that are prevalent in realist international relations theories, intergovernmentalism was first developed as a theory in opposition to neofunctionalism. In a nutshell, intergovernmentalism argues that states (i.e., national governments or state leaders), based on national interests, determine the outcome of integration. Intergovernmentalism was seen as a plausible explanatory perspective during the 1970s and 1980s, when the integration process seemed to have stalled. Despite the fact that it could not explain many of the gradual incremental changes or informal politics, intergovernmentalism—as did various other approaches—gained renewed popularity in the 1990s, following the launch of liberal intergovernmentalism. During that decade, the study of European integration was burgeoning, triggered in part by the aim to complete the single market and the signing of the Maastricht Treaty that launched the European Union (EU). Intergovernmentalism also often received considerable pushback from researchers who were unconvinced by its core predictions. Attempts to relaunch intergovernmentalism were made in the 2010s, in response to the observation that EU member states played a prominent role in dealing with the various crises that the EU was confronted with at that time, such as the financial crisis and the migration crisis. Although intergovernmentalism is unable —and is not suited—to explain all aspects of European integration, scholars revert to intergovernmentalism as a theoretical approach in particular when examining the role of member states in European politics. Outside the EU, in the international arena (such as the United Nations), intergovernmentalism is also observed when studying various forums in which member states come together to bargain over particular collective outcomes in an intergovernmental setting.

History of the European Neighborhood Policy and Eastern Partnership

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-19
Author(s):  
Aaron Thomas Walter
Keyword(s):  
Arab Spring ◽  
Member States ◽  
Eastern Partnership ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Southern Mediterranean ◽  
History Of ◽  
European Neighborhood Policy ◽  
Migration Crisis ◽  
The Arab Spring ◽  
The Eu

The European Neighborhood Policy (ENP) was designed in 2004 to create closer ties between the EU and its eastern and southern neighboring countries. In 2009, the Eastern Partnership (EaP), a joint initiative between the 28 EU Member States and 6 Eastern countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine), was launched on the same basis of supporting area of prosperity and good neighborliness. To understand how the EU engages its neighboring countries in the southern Mediterranean and northern borders and fulfills the EaP in its requirements of security and stability, a history of the ENP and EaP is provided. The following chapter shall also explore the ENP and EaP framework and challenges linked to consequentialism and appropriateness between 2005 and 2017, including new approaches in the aftermath of the Arab Spring and 2015 migration crisis.

The EU General Data Protection Regulation: How will it impact the regulation of research biobanks? Setting the legal frame in the Mediterranean and Eastern European area

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 241-255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simone Penasa ◽  
Iñigo de Miguel Beriain ◽  
Carla Barbosa ◽  
Anna Białek ◽  
Theodora Chortara ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Data Protection ◽  
Personal Data ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
Member States ◽  
General Data Protection Regulation ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
European Area ◽  
General Data ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
The Eu

On 25 May 2018, the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) will come into force. As with the Data Protection Directive (95/46/EC), the regulation of biobanks for scientific research will be profoundly affected by this reform. Accordingly, a comparative survey of some of the existing national regulatory frameworks is of value to aid understanding of whether and how EU Member States will need to realign their systems to ensure compliance with the new Regulation. This article provides a comparison of the positions of Member States in the Mediterranean and Eastern European area, focusing especially on the existing regulatory framework on biobanks, the definition of personal and genetic data, the pseudonymization process, the processing of personal data for medical research purposes (and its impact on the right to consent of the individuals involved) and the secondary use of such data. The article concludes that effective implementation of the EU GDPR will represent a decisive catalyst for adaptive harmonization of biobanks regulation in the European framework.

scholarly journals The road to Sophia: Explaining the EU’s naval operation in the Mediterranean

European View ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 197-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
Niklas Nováky
Keyword(s):  
European Commission ◽  
Human Smuggling ◽  
Illegal Migration ◽  
Member States ◽  
The Road ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
Migration Crisis ◽  
Mediterranean Migration

This article analyses the process through which Operation Sophia came into being. The EU’s on-going anti-smuggling naval operation in the Mediterranean, Sophia was launched during the height of the 2015 migration crisis. The article argues that Sophia is essentially an Italian strategy to deal with the security and humanitarian aspects of the Mediterranean migration problem. It was in 2013 that Italy first proposed an EU naval operation to tackle human smuggling and trafficking in the Mediterranean. However, the idea collapsed because other EU member states saw illegal migration in the Mediterranean as mainly a national problem facing Italy. In the spring of 2015 the European Commission revisited the proposal as part of its 10-point plan to deal with the migration problem. This time it succeeded because Italy’s partners could no longer oppose it without appearing callous towards the plight of the migrants.

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