Frontex Unveiled: Evolution, Expansion, and Controversial Practices in EU Border Management
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by Unboxify,
5 min reading time
# The Evolution and Controversy of Frontex 🚀
## The European Union's Response to Migration Challenges
At least since the height of the so-called European migrant crisis in 2015, characterized by large numbers of people arriving in the European Union, there has been an ongoing process of finding answers to the challenges of increased migration. While the number of new asylum seekers arriving in the EU has decreased since its peak in 2015, displaced people continue to arrive, sparking ongoing discussions between EU member states regarding how to approach immigration into the Union.
### Establishment of Frontex 🌐
In order to meet these challenges, the EU is currently setting up an agency with the task of guaranteeing European border protection. The European Border and Coast Guard Agency - Frontex, is based in Warsaw and has been growing rapidly with expanding responsibilities. This agency is controversial, and the difficulties in setting up such an organization indicate major disagreements on the issue of migration.
## The Schengen Area and Its Implications 🌍
Within the European Union, there is the so-called Schengen area. In this area, no systematic border controls take place, making the borders between EU countries open, although temporary controls are allowed under exceptional circumstances, such as the Covid-19 pandemic. EU countries of Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania, and Cyprus are not yet part of the Schengen area but are all pursuing a path towards joining.
Because systematic checks and controls have generally been abolished at internal European national borders due to Schengen, the protection of external borders is increasingly seen as a European task. However, each EU country coordinated its border security on its own, leading to potential problems. For this reason, Frontex was launched in 2005 to connect various departments and police authorities of individual EU member states and coordinate joint operations.
## Migration Routes into the EU 🚢
Migrants arrive in the EU via multiple routes. One common land route is from Turkey to either Bulgaria or Greece. From there, migrants often continue along the Balkan route to Croatia and the Schengen countries of Hungary and Slovenia. Significant maritime routes include:
- Turkey to the Greek island of Lesbos
- Libya and Tunisia to the Italian island of Lampedusa or Malta
- Western Mediterranean route from Morocco to the southern coast of Spain
- Land routes to the Spanish exclaves of Ceuta and Melilla
Along these routes, Frontex is most present, monitoring and analyzing the situation and supporting search and rescue operations. The agency assists local police by providing additional agents to help with the registration of people or the return of rejected asylum seekers, while also combating border crimes like drug trafficking.
## Expansion and Controversies of Frontex 🛡️
Frontex initially did not have its own agents and was dependent on equipment and staff from EU member states. However, over the years, the agency's scope of tasks, staff, and budget have increased significantly. The budget leaped from 98 million euros in 2014 to 544 million euros in 2021, with a most recent grant of 5.6 billion euros for a seven-year span until 2027.
For the first time, the agency hired its own staff, creating the European Border and Coast Guard standing corps intended to be expanded to 10,000 civil servants by 2027. Future investments include patrol cars, mobile offices, vessels, planes, drones, and more technical equipment deployed at the external borders.
### Investment in Technology and Privacy Concerns 🛰️
Frontex relies heavily on monitoring border regions from the air, using surveillance aircraft equipped with cameras and feeding imagery into a central digital system, Eurosur. The agency aims to increase air surveillance using unmanned drones, with significant investments in drones from Airbus, Israel Aerospace Industries, and Elbit Systems.
However, the heavy investment in technology and close ties with the arms industry have drawn criticism. Critics argue that the increased use of airplanes and drones enables Frontex to continue controversial practices like pushbacks under the guise of surveillance.
## The Controversy over Pushbacks ⚖️
In 2020, a New York Times report outlined how Frontex was involved in covering up pushbacks of migrants to Turkey by Greek authorities. This practice contravenes the principle of non-refoulement, anchored in Article 33 of the Geneva Refugee Convention. Increasing reports allege that European coast guards engage in dangerous maneuvers to push back rubber boats filled with migrants. Critics argue that Frontex's reliance on drones, which are not obligated to assist vessels in distress, bypass legal responsibilities.
### Cooperation with the Libyan Coast Guard ⛔
Frontex shares gathered information with Turkish and Libyan coast guards. The EU supports the Libyan Coast Guard with financial aid, amounting to 91 million euros, and equipment donations from Italy. While some argue this cooperation saves lives, critics see it as outsourcing EU border controls to Libyan authorities who operate outside European human rights conventions. Libya's unstable political situation raises concerns about human rights abuses, and migrants returned to Libya risk imprisonment and torture.
## A Centralized Force with Expanded Capabilities 🚨
Frontex has evolved from an agency meant to improve coordination between EU countries into a centralized force with substantial technical capabilities and intelligence collection. Despite its expanded role, there remains no uniform approach within the EU on how to tackle migration challenges.
### Conclusion 📢
The establishment and rapid expansion of Frontex underline the EU's commitment to strengthening its border control capabilities. Yet, the agency's controversial practices and significant reliance on technology reveal unresolved tensions within the Union about how best to handle migration. As the debate continues, finding a balance between effective border control and humanitarian obligations remains paramount.
