Migrant Influx to EU’s External Borders Surged to Six-Year High in 2022
A dinghy with Afghan refugees approaches the Greek island of Lesbos on February 28, 2020 next to UK Border Force patrol boat HMC Valiant, patroling in Agean sea under European Union border force Frontex.
The European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex, has voiced alarm over increasing pressure on the EU’s external borders since early 2022, deploying more than 2,300 standing corps officers and staff to deal with the influx of migrants.Around 330,000 illegal migrants attempted to cross into the European Union last year, the bloc’s border and coast guard agency, Frontex, has stated. This number represents the highest migrant influx since 2016.© Photo : TwitterScreenshot of Twitter account of European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex.
Screenshot of Twitter account of European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex.The bloc’s border management agency also offered its “preliminary calculations” regarding the principal routes resorted to by illegal migrants. Thus, almost half of the 2022 entry attempts were made overland through the Western Balkans region, Frontex said. It clarified that approximately 47 percent of the unauthorized border crossings were attempted by Syrians, Afghans, and Tunisians.© Photo : TwitterScreenshot of Twitter account of European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex.
Screenshot of Twitter account of European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex.Throughout last year, the number of people setting off on often dangerous journeys across the Mediterranean Sea in crowded boats and rubber dinghies soared, with more than 100,000 such crossing endeavors recorded. Compared to 2021, this is an increase of about 50 percent.While Egyptians, Tunisians, and Bangladeshis were singled out as frontrunners in the number of such illegal crossing attempts, the agency added that 2022 was marked by an uptick in arrivals transiting via Libya – the most in five years. Libya had turned into the main departure hub in North Africa for illegal migrants, the agency said. © Photo : TwitterScreenshot of Twitter account of European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex.
Screenshot of Twitter account of European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex.As for Tunisians, they were said to be leading the surge in irregular migration to Europe, with numbers of people leaving the northernmost country in Africa hitting the highest level in recent history. Various factors, such as a deteriorating economic situation at home and social repercussions of unemployment and/or underemployment were believed to be the driving force behind the surge.Frontex specified that the released migrant figures did not include approximately 13 million Ukrainian refugees who amassed at the EU’s external borders between the months of February and December 2022.Ukrainians leaving their country amid the ongoing Russian special military operation in the country have been benefitting from the Temporary Protection Directive, activated on March 4, 2022, allowing them to live in the EU, find work, and attend school for three years without need of an official asylum approval. 
WorldFrontex: EU Records Highest Number of Illegal Migrants in 8 Months Since 20169 September 2022, 15:59 GMTIn December 2022, there were reports that staff from the European Border and Coast Guard Agency might be deployed outside the bloc’s jurisdiction at non-EU borders in the Western Balkans to crack down on a surge in illegal migrants.If specific agreements with regional governments can be set in place, the deployment could be used to “reinforce border management along the whole migration route” in cooperation with national border guards “to reduce irregular flows,” the European Commission said.
WorldFrontex Staff May Be Deployed to Western Balkans as EU Struggles to Curb Migrant Flows6 December 2022, 14:16 GMT
