Frontex

Irregular immigration to the EU from Western Africa rose more than ten times on the year in January, according to the bloc's Frontex border agency, which expects overall arrivals to grow in 2024 and says halting the movement of people completely is impossible.

Greek authorities on Tuesday located 57 migrants and recovered the bodies of two individuals on a rocky shore along the northeastern coast of Lesvos in the eastern Aegean. One person was said to remain missing.

There is a significant increase in the number of illegal border crossings in the EU for 2023, totaling around 380,000, with a rise in arrivals from the Mediterranean Sea. This was announced by the European Border and Coast Guard Agency ("Frontex").

Irregular border crossings into the European Union reached an eight-year high in 2023, the EU's border and coast guard agency has said.

According to preliminary calculations by Frontex, approximately 380,000 people irregularly entered into the EU last year, the highest level since 2016.

The Vice-President of the European Commission, Maroš Šefčovič, announced strong backing for Bulgaria and Romania's full accession to the Schengen zone by the end of the year. Speaking before the European Parliament in Strasbourg, Šefčovič emphasized ongoing efforts to reinforce external borders and pilot projects with FRONTEX.

Bulgaria's journey toward integration into the Schengen Area marked a notable development as Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mariya Gabriel disclosed plans to negotiate the country's accession to Schengen for land borders in 2024. This revelation emerged during the parliamentary Question Time on Friday.

Two migrants were killed and 30 were rescued in Greece on Wednesday after a dinghy crashed into rocks in high winds on the island of Lesvos, local authorities said.

The incident occurred near the resort town of Thermi on the east of the island, facing the nearby coast of Turkey.

Romania's Schengen accession on March 31 brings about notable changes at Bucharest's Henri Coanda International Airport as Austrian officers will collaborate with Romanian counterparts in passport and document scrutiny. The collaboration aims to enhance border security and streamline identity verification processes for travelers entering the Schengen zone.

Chief Commissioner Anton Zlatanov from Bulgaria's Border Police addressed recent developments regarding Bulgaria's Schengen entry and the evolving migrant situation in Europe.

The Austrian government has specified five prerequisites for potentially lifting checks at Schengen land borders for Bulgarian and Romanian citizens, as detailed in a statement released after the European Council's decision to open air and sea borders for both countries on December 29.