DOI: https://doi.org/10.17721/2524-048X.2024.27.2

 

Abstract.

The article examines the policy of the EU border externalization, i.e. transfer of border control and responsibility for migration processes to third countries, namely the Italo-Libyan cooperation in the field of migration is examined in detail. Investigation of agreements and arrangements between the governments of the two countries in 2000–2010s was made. The terms of the agreements and methods of their implementation, the historical and political context in which these decisions were made are considered in detail. The author tries to find out whether Italy achieved the goals set by these agreements and whether the Italian government acted in accordance with European norms.

Particular attention is paid to the legal aspects and principles on which the treaties between Italy and Libya are based. Attention is focused on the declared need for respect for human rights, and the lack of fulfillment of these obligations in practice. The article examines in detail the dynamics of relations between the two countries in the 2000s and their change after the outbreak of war in Libya, and the beginning of the active phase of the migration crisis in Europe. The article reveals important aspects of cooperation between these two countries, and the impact of this cooperation on migrants. The author also refers to relevant cases of the European Court of Human Rights considering claims for the forced expulsion of migrants to Libya based on bilateral agreements. Contradictions between the strategies of the EU and Italy regarding the migration crisis are also considered, the author draws attention to the lack of solidarity between EU member states, which forces states located on the external borders of the EU to cooperate with third countries in exchange for political and economic concessions.

It is argued that the phenomenon of externalization of borders is complex and multidimensional, and decisions on migration regulation that include third countries require more comprehensive approaches, taking into account compliance with international obligations to protect human rights, which cannot be sacrificed solely on the basis of political necessity.

Keywords: Italy, EU, European integration, migration crisis, human rights, immigration.

 

Submitted 02.01.2024

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