Are we facing a militarisation of Europe’s borders? As the European Parliament considers a further strengthening of Frontex’s mandate, the European border guard agency is attracting criticism. In the space of just a few years, Frontex has become the armed wing of the EU’s migration policy and, for a large section of the European left, embodies the security drift of a Europe that is closing in. With its budget on the rise, its mission increasingly unclear and its effectiveness contested, Frontex is now at the heart of the debate on the future of European migration policy. Created in 2004 to coordinate the management of the EU’s external borders, the agency has seen its resources explode. Its budget has risen from €142 million in 2015 to more than €900 million in 2025, and it now employs more than 10,000 staff.
The image of a Europe overwhelmed by migrants continues to fuel political discourse. Yet the figures tell a very different story. According to the latest data published by Frontex, irregular crossings at the EU’s external borders fell by 31% in the first quarter of 2025, reaching their lowest level since 2021.
According to the European Commission, Frontex’s increase in power is justified by the need to strengthen border protection in the face of “migratory challenges”. But criticism is mounting on the left. They denounce the increasing militarisation, which is contrary to the fundamental values of the Union and totally ineffective in humanitarian and security terms.
Militarisation of Europe’s borders: An obsession with security despite a fall in arrivals
Only certain migratory routes, such as the central Mediterranean or the Canary Islands, are experiencing occasional peaks in arrivals. But overall, the European Union is experiencing a significant drop in flows. But this has not dampened the political response. Quite the contrary: the obsession with control continues to guide decisions, to the detriment of human rights.
The European Left sounds the alarm against the militarisation of Europe’s borders
In the European Parliament, the left-wing parties have turned Frontex into a symbol. For The Left, the agency should simply be dissolved. The group denounces its role in illegal refoulements, border violence and recurrent violations of international law. In their view, Frontex cannot be reformed. The alternative is to create legal access routes to asylum, and to end impunity for abuses committed at the borders.
The ecologists, on the other hand, are calling for a radical transformation of the agency. They want to turn it into a humanitarian player, tasked with protecting migrants rather than pushing them back. To this end, pushbacks should be banned, and European rescue missions should be set up in the Mediterranean. Today, these missions are carried out almost exclusively by NGOs, often hampered by governments.
The Socialists and Democrats (S&D) do not go as far, but their criticism is just as clear. They are calling for structural reform of Frontex, greater parliamentary control and an asylum policy based on solidarity. They reject the logic of closure and the externalisation of borders, and call for a fair distribution of reception facilities between Member States.
Increased resources for questionable results
Despite considerable resources, Frontex’s results are widely disputed. One report follows another and they all look the same: lack of transparency, budgetary excesses, questionable efficiency. As long ago as 2022, the European Court of Auditors pointed out the shortcomings in the way the agency operated. In 2023, an explosive report by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) revealed cases of harassment, abuse of power and major internal dysfunctions.
Even more worrying are Frontex’s actions on the ground. The agency is regularly accused of being involved in illegal deportations, both at sea and on land, in violation of the right to asylum. At the Greek-Turkish border, in the Balkans and off the coast of Libya, independent investigations, NGOs and even European institutions have documented practices that are contrary to international law.
The militarisation of Europe’s borders – an open-air humanitarian disaster
Behind the figures, there are lives. Since 2014, more than 27,000 people have died in the Mediterranean trying to reach Europe, according to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). Every year, thousands of deaths could be avoided in Europe. But tighter controls have not stopped people leaving: they have simply made the routes more dangerous, longer and deadlier.
For the Left, this massacre is the result of a political choice. By refusing to organise legal channels for accessing asylum, by hindering rescue operations and by entrusting border management to militarised agencies, the EU is sacrificing its values. “Frontex is the showcase of a dehumanised Europe”, says an MEP from The Left. “We’d rather build walls than bridges.
Militarisation of Europe’s borders: Towards a break or continuity?
The Frontex debate is crystallising deep fault lines within the European Parliament. On the one hand, a majority of right-wingers and centrists continue to defend a security-based vision of migration policy. On the other, the left is trying to build an alternative, based on a welcoming attitude, solidarity and respect for human rights.
But in the face of public opinion that is often swayed by fear-mongering, the equation remains complex. The Right understood a long time ago that safety pays off in electoral terms. The left, on the other hand, has to fight hard to get people to listen to a discourse that goes against the grain, that is sometimes unpopular but meaningful.
Europe at a turning point
The militarisation of Europe’s borders cannot be taken for granted. For progressive forces, there is still time to change course. This presupposes a strong political will and appropriate resources, but also a change of perspective: treating migrants not as a threat, but as human beings.
In this battle, Frontex is more than an agency: it is a revealer. An indicator of the Union’s priorities, its contradictions, and its ability – or lack of ability – to remain faithful to the values it proclaims. Tomorrow’s migration policy will be a test. A test of solidarity, dignity and democracy.
🔗 Resources :
- Frontex – Official website
- Amnesty International – Frontex and human rights
- European Court of Auditors – Report on Frontex
