22 Mar Frontex in North Macedonia

The EU’s border and coast guard agency Frontex will provide operational support in the border management of North Macedonia, “with full respect for fundamental rights”, under an agreement adopted by EU lawmakers on 15 February 2023.

Frontex will deploy its teams to support North Macedonia authorities in managing migrants at the border of the country, which lies on the so-called Balkan Route used by migrants to get from the south-eastern to western Europe.

According to Frontex data, irregular crossing through the Balkan route “more than doubled” in 2021, in comparison with the previous year, for a total of 61,735 crossings detected, while 330,000 were registered in 2022 – the highest number since 2016, according to the EU agency.

In detail, the joint activities have to be requested by the North Macedonia authorities, on the basis of an operational plan. The agreement will enter into force two months after the EU and North Macedonia notify the completion of internal ratification procedures.

According to the text of the agreement, “the staff have to fully respect fundamental rights, including access to asylum procedures and human dignity, and pay particular attention to vulnerable groups”. To ensure that, the proposal stipulates that there will be a dedicated Frontex office in charge of monitoring human rights. 

The EU-North Macedonia agreement is not the first deal that aims to expand the presence of Frontex in third countries with sensitive areas in terms of immigrant routes, such as the Western Balkans.

In mid November, the Council of the EU announced the start of international negotiations about increased presence of Frontex in four other Western Balkan countries – Albania, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro.

Reference from the website of Euractiv