The recent proposals refer to the package agreed on December 8, which includes significant new rules to reform the EU’s approach to migration, such as establishing asylum processing centers in non-EU countries.
Governments are urging the EU executive to focus more on the external aspect of migration by collaborating with origin countries and transit countries to prevent migrants from reaching the EU. This involves expediting “innovative solutions,” a broad term for measures like return hubs and new partnerships with non-EU countries, aimed at making EU migration policy more effective.
This appeal is expected to be a key topic at the informal “migration breakfast” happening this week before the EU summit on Thursday. These breakfasts, initiated in June 2024 by Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, Denmark’s Mette Frederiksen, and the Netherlands’ Dick Schoof, have gained significant influence over the migration discussions in Brussels.
In their letter, the ministers advocate for the expansion of “new and innovative solutions” to combat irregular migration and for increased cooperation among EU agencies, international organizations, and EU nations.
Although the letter doesn’t specify particular models, it mentions tools already integrated into EU law, such as “safe third country arrangements and return hubs,” and calls for their implementation through partnerships along migration routes.
Italy has been a proponent of the “return hubs” model, where individuals whose asylum claims have been rejected can be sent. The country operates two such facilities in Albania under a different legal context, with these expected to serve as the first practical application of this concept by mid-2026.
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