The EU's border protection agency has deployed teams to Albania to support police there in stopping illegal immigration. This is Frontex's first mission outside EU territory, with Brussels dubbing it a "game changer."
The EU border agency Frontex says the number of detected illegal border crossings into the EU has continued to fall. In the first trimester of 2019, the total was 27 percent lower than a year ago.
An agreement between the European Union and Albania to manage the country's borders has officially come into force. Agents from the EU border agency Frontex will be deployed there to fight irregular immigration and trafficking.
The Italian Coast Guard on Thursday intercepted a boat off the Sardinian coast with nine people onboard including two under age 18. The nine were trying to row their way to shore.
The European Parliament has called for an expansion of the EU's border protection authority. However, concerns over jurisdiction are giving many member states reason for pause.
The European border agency Frontex says the number of migrants arriving in Europe by boat via the Central Mediterranean has nearly halved. In the past three months, the agency says the number of arrivals has fallen by 92 percent.
The expansion of the European Border and Coast Guard Agency Frontex will be gradual, but slower than what was initially proposed. It still has to be approved by the EU parliament and member states.
Europe is facing 'no burning crisis' of people crossing its external borders, according to the EU’s border and coastguard agency, Frontex. But despite a drop in arrivals, the agency says stronger border controls are needed.
European Union countries plus Norway and Switzerland saw a 10 percent drop in international protection requests in 2018 compared with 2017. The EU border agency, Frontex, also says arrivals via the Central Mediterranean route in January were 73 percent down on the previous month.
The European Union has signed an agreement with Montenegro for border management of migrant flows in the Balkans area.
Germany is suspending participation in Operation Sophia, the EU naval mission targeting human trafficking in the Mediterranean. The decision reportedly relates to Italy's reluctance to allow rescued people to disembark.
Populist anti-immigration parties have gained strength in many European countries following a massive influx of migration into the EU. The bloc's border agency says illegal arrivals in 2018 fell to around 150,000 people.