Europe’s struggle with uncontrolled illegal immigration is escalating

On Tuesday, the European Commission introduced an EU Action Plan to manage the Western Mediterranean and Atlantic routes.

The plan is of particular importance to Spain, which has been grappling with unchecked, large-scale immigration.

This surge of immigrants has resulted in deteriorating neighborhoods and growing insecurity, as pointed out by the leader of the VOX delegation in the European Parliament, Jorge Buxadé.

Italy, under the leadership of Council of Ministers President Giorgia Meloni, has been relentless in its efforts to combat illegal immigration and bolster border protection.

In a recent move, the Italian coast guard detained two German ships on June 2, as they picked up migrants in the Mediterranean without abiding by a new law.

This law mandates that after each rescue operation, the ships must request access to the nearest port and proceed towards it rather than staying idle at sea.

The Italian government asserts that this new legislation will deter migrants from undertaking the perilous journey, as it removes the assurance of being rescued and taken aboard.

One of the apprehended ships, which had taken onboard 37 migrants, is due to be put out of commission for 20 days and later subjected to a fine.

However, despite these stringent measures, the influx of migrants into Italy hasn’t slowed down.

An analysis by the EU office responsible for overseeing the Union’s external borders reveals a worrying trend.

Detentions along the Central Mediterranean route, as reported by national authorities, spiked to nearly 42,200 from January to April 2023.

This specific route saw a 28% surge in detentions, while other primary routes witnessed a decline in detentions, ranging from 7% to 47%.

The Central Mediterranean route accounted for over half of all illegal entries into the EU in the first part of this year.

Moreover, illegal border crossings via this route during the first four months of 2023 surged fourfold compared to the same timeframe in 2022, marking the highest level since record-keeping started in 2009.

Illegal immigration Europe, EU Action Plan on illegal immigration