RMF242 hours agoPolitics2 min read

Poland proposes changing the interpretation of the Geneva Convention in the context of aggressive border crossing

Quick Look

Poland proposes that persons participating in organized and aggressive crossing of the EU border cannot invoke the protection resulting from the ban on expelling refugees from Article 33(1).
2 of the Geneva Convention.
The proposal is to be discussed at the EU level and is inspired by the events in Ceuta, Spain, and the experiences from the Polish-Belarusian border.

AI-generated summary

Why It Matters

The proposal results from the events in Ceuta, Spain, in August 2026, where there was a mass influx of migrants trying to get from Morocco to the EU territory, including by organized crossing of the border. Poland also refers to its experiences on the border with Belarus.

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What exactly is the Polish proposal about?

This case concerns the interpretation of Article 33(2) of the Geneva Convention relating to the status of refugees.

This provision provides for an exception to the principle of prohibition of expelling or returning a refugee. According to it, the protection resulting from this prohibition cannot be invoked by a person who has grounds to be considered a threat to the security of the country in which he or she resides, or by a person who has been legally convicted of a particularly serious crime and constitutes a threat to society.

Poland wants these provisions to be interpreted appropriately also in the event of organized, aggressive border crossing. The idea is that in certain situations people participating in organized and aggressive border crossings cannot benefit from international protection.

Poland wants the issue of the interpretation of these provisions to be discussed at the level of the entire EU. The next meeting of the ministers of internal affairs of the EU countries will be held at the beginning of October. Migration issues are then to be discussed at the European Council on October 15-16.

Will the EU draw conclusions from the events in Ceuta?

The Polish proposal is one of the effects of the extraordinary videoconference of EU interior ministers, which took place in early August after the events in Ceuta, Spain. There was then a massive influx of migrants who tried to get from Morocco to Spanish territory, and some of them crossed the border in an organized manner. Already then, Maciej Duszczyk said that illegal entry into the EU should automatically exclude the possibility of obtaining the right of residence. He referred to Polish experiences on the border with Belarus.

22 EU leaders, including Donald Tusk, called in a special letter for an urgent EU response to the events in Ceuta. In their opinion, the community cannot allow illegal crossing of the border to lead to legal stay.

What to Watch

AI outlook — possibilities, not facts

The issue of the interpretation of Article 33 of the Geneva Convention will be taken up at the meeting of EU interior ministers in early October 2026.
Very likely · Within days
The topic of migration and border security will be discussed at the European Council on October 15-16, 2026.
Very likely · Within weeks

Open Questions

Will other EU countries support Poland's proposal?
What form will the final interpretation of Article 33 of the Geneva Convention take?
Will the change in interpretation have an impact on current asylum procedures in the EU?