European Commission presents five-point plan to secure external borders

A five-point plan to prevent, quickly report and manage sudden and mass arrivals of irregular migrants was presented on Tuesday 29 September in Brussels, with the aim of strengthening the resilience and security of the Union's external borders. This plan will be examined at the next Justice and Home Affairs Council.

This initiative constitutes the [European] Commission's response to the migration crisis which shook Ceuta this summer. Brussels stresses that the number of illegal crossings is at its lowest level since 2021, but recognizes that the EU's borders have recently come under strain, both in the East and in the Mediterranean.

In its press release, the Commission emphasizes that its President, Ursula von der Leyen, insisted, during her speech on the State of the Union, on the fact that "the EU's tools must evolve, in particular to deal with emergency situations".

For the Executive Vice-President of the Commission, Henna Virkkunen, "a stronger Europe starts with stronger external borders", adding that, thanks to secure digital tools, better data sharing and smarter technologies, the [European] Union helps border authorities to manage migration flows and fight cross-border crime.

This plan is based on the European asylum and migration strategy of January 2026 and is structured around five pillars:

Closer cooperation with partner countries, with emphasis on early warning and information sharing.

The development of a new European emergency response framework, particularly for scenarios in which massive population movements are provoked and used as a weapon.

Monitoring and early warning.

Dismantling of human trafficking and smuggling networks.

Strengthening returns, with the Commission calling for the use of all available tools – including trade, development cooperation and visas.

Measures that were already on the table

It should be noted that most of the measures included in this plan are not new. Strengthening Frontex's mandate is part of the commitments made by the Commission since the 2024 political guidelines. The creation of European offices responsible for legal migration was envisaged in the visa strategy published in January, and the first pilot project has been operational in New Delhi since February. As for the sanctions regime against traffickers, it was proposed in July and is awaiting unanimous approval by the Council.

The revision of the directive on the facilitation of illegal entry has been on hold since November 2023, with the European Parliament yet to adopt a negotiating position.

The latest developments include a proposal to provide Frontex with a legal basis to monitor social media, a project abandoned in 2019 following objections related to the protection of personal data, as well as proposed cooperation protocols with major online platforms.

Finally, the European emergency intervention framework, announced by Ursula von der Leyen on September 16 in Strasbourg, has not yet been specified in detail.