Germany and other European Union countries are aiming to finalize so-called "return hubs," detention centers outside the bloc where they wish to send migrants whose asylum requests have been rejected, by the end of the year.
The European Parliament in June approved tougher migration rules that paved the way for the creation of "return hubs."
"We want to reach an agreement with third countries this year," which would then enable the establishment of so-called "return hubs," said German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt after a meeting with his counterparts from Denmark, Greece, Austria and the Netherlands in Copenhagen on Friday.
He added that "technical discussions" were currently underway with countries outside the EU, but did not name such countries.
What did the EU ministers say on 'return hubs?'
The five EU countries whose ministers attended the Copenhagen meeting are seeking a deal with an undisclosed non-EU country to host the "return hubs."
Uganda and Rwanda in particular are seen as possibilities —two autocratically ruled countries.
"Around New Year, we expect to have a common understanding with a partner country outside of the European Union," said Danish Migrations Minister Morten Bodskov.
Both the Greek and Danish migration ministers said they wished for the "return hubs" to become operational by 2027.
"We do not accept that foreigners staying illegally in Denmark should be rewarded because of our difficulties in returning them," Bodskov said in an earlier statement.
The controversial scheme had already been briefly adopted by the United Kingdom under the former conservative government, but has since been scrapped after the social democratic Labour Party came to power.
In Italy, the right-wing government of Giorgia Meloni reached a similar deal with Albania which currently faces legal challenges.
Are EU 'return hubs' legal?
The legality of the plans for the so-called "return hubs" remains unclear under EU law.
A legal appraisal issued by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in April concluded that the controversial Italian deportation centers in Albania do not violate European law.
EU law does not in principle prohibit member states from establishing such centers outside their own territory.
However, it stipulates that deportees continue to receive legal counsel and linguistic support, and are able to maintain contact with their families and the relevant authorities.
Andreas Grünewald, a migration expert with the German evangelical charity Brot für die Welt (Bread for the World), questioned the feasibility of the plans, calling them "practically difficult to implement and highly problematic in terms of human rights."
He said ministers risked running into "political dead ends."
Rights organizations criticize EU 'return hubs'
The highly controversial plan has been met with wide rejection from rights groups, including children's charities and church organizations, who have criticized the plans for what they see as the "criminalization of migration."
Marta Welander from the International Rescue Committee (IRC), a global humanitarian aid, relief and development NGO, said the plans risk "normalizing detainment in prison-like facilities" and warned that deportees may face "persecution, torture or worse" in their destination countries.
Caritas, a Catholic charity operating in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Slovakia, said that migrants risked becoming trapped in a "legal grey area" if "arbitrarily and indefinitely detained" in the hubs.
Florian Westphal, CEO of Save The Children Germany, warned of the risks faced in particular by children and young people.
"The planned return centers in third countries are places of uncertainty and carry the risk of massive violations of children's rights," he said.
"Transferring children to states with which they have no connection, and where they face the risk of deprivation of liberty and are cut off from key figures in their lives, cannot be in their best interests. Children deserve unconditional protection, no matter where they come from or where they live."
Edited by: Zac Crellin
