At the conclusion of a high-stakes summit in Brussels, EU leaders signaled a potentially transformative shift in the bloc’s migration policy by agreeing vaguely to outsourcing immigration deportations.
On Thursday, the 27 leaders of the European Union provided their clearest support yet for the controversial idea of outsourcing migration management. However, they offered limited details on how the policy would be implemented and how authorities could uphold human rights while transferring migrants outside the EU. Notably absent from the final statement was the plan to build “return hubs” in non-EU countries for individuals whose asylum applications have been rejected. Nevertheless, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen referenced the concept during a press conference, confirming it remains under consideration.
“The return hubs have been discussed. There are open questions: How long can people stay there? What happens if a return isn’t possible?” von der Leyen said, adding that while the issue is complex, discussions are ongoing.
Von der Leyen did not specify where these “return hubs” might be located, nor did she confirm if her forthcoming legislative proposal on expediting deportations would include them. However, she seemed to endorse outsourcing, proposing two additional approaches to shift asylum procedures away from the EU: offering migrants protection in “safe third countries” and financially supporting the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to assist stranded migrants in returning to their home countries.
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and Belgium’s Prime Minister Alexander De Croo expressed reservations about the return hubs, criticizing their cost and lack of effectiveness in addressing the root causes of irregular migration. De Croo noted, “History has shown that these solutions don’t bring much in the way of results.”
Despite this opposition, the broader consensus among EU leaders seems to favor offshoring migration management, despite concerns from humanitarian organizations that it could undermine the asylum process and violate human rights.
European Council President Charles Michel commented, “I can see that positions and plans are more aligned, particularly regarding the external aspect of migration, and there is a desire for more operational action.”
Instrumentalized Migration
Return hubs were just one of the contentious topics addressed during the summit. Leaders also focused on “instrumentalized migration” from Belarus and Russia, which has affected Poland, Finland, and the Baltic states.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk proposed a new strategy to counter this tactic, which includes a “temporary territorial suspension of the right to asylum.” This plan, which seems to challenge a fundamental tenet of international law requiring states to examine asylum claims, did not face significant pushback from other leaders, according to diplomats.
Tusk said his proposal was inspired by Finland’s emergency law from July, which legal experts argue effectively permits pushbacks. Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo voiced support for Tusk’s approach, noting Finland’s own experience with instrumentalized migration last year. “We need European-level legislation against instrumentalized immigration,” Orpo said.
The summit’s conclusions reflected this demand, calling for “exceptional measures” to protect external borders using “all available means” while adhering to EU and international law. The ambiguity over the boundary between legal and illegal measures remains, as the Commission has yet to finalize its analysis of Finland’s law.
Von der Leyen emphasized that Poland and other states must be allowed to protect the EU from such “hybrid attacks” by state actors, affirming that measures, though temporary, are necessary.
The summit’s final text also urged the Commission to broker more EU-funded agreements with neighboring countries to prevent migrant arrivals, similar to the Tunisia deal, which von der Leyen hailed as a success for reducing migrant flows through the Central Mediterranean by 64% this year.
In a political nod to the European Commission, the leaders also stressed the importance of implementing existing EU legislation on migration, marking a victory for the Commission after Poland and Hungary pledged to defy migration reforms passed in May. The leaders’ statement called for exploring “new ways to prevent and counter irregular migration,” effectively giving political approval for “innovative solutions” to reduce asylum applications, which topped 1.1 million last year—the highest since 2016.
Ahead of the summit, Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, the Netherlands’ Dick Schoof, and Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen led a coalition of countries backing outsourcing, setting the tone for the summit’s negotiations.
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