‘Irregular’ border crossings top 350,000 in 2023, according to Frontex
The number of irregular border crossings into the European Union from January to November 2023 has reached over 355,300, which is the highest level registered since 2016, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) said on Monday.
The increase is mainly driven by the inflow of undocumented migrants through the Central Mediterranean, which remained “the busiest migratory route in 2023.”
It stands for every second illegal border crossing in the EU, the EU border agency said, adding that over 152,000 detections had been registered on the route alone during the first 11 months of 2023. Despite the inflow, November of this year saw the number of irregular border crossings in this direction drop by 24% month-on-month to nearly 7,900.
“2023 has seen a significant rise in the number of irregular border crossings, which increased by 17% in the first 11 months to reach over 355,300. This number has already surpassed the entire total for 2022, marking the highest value recorded since 2016,” Frontex said in a statement.
According to the statement, the situation on the Eastern Mediterranean route also remains tense, as the number of irregular border crossings has increased by nearly 50% year-on-year to 52,600.
“The Western African route has seen the biggest rise in the number of irregular crossings, which doubled so far this year to over 32,400. This unprecedented rise is the highest since Frontex began collecting data in 2009. The number of arrivals in November jumped over 500% compared to the same month of last year to nearly 4,700,” Frontex added.
Meanwhile, the Western Balkan route experienced “the biggest annual drop” among the majority routes, with the number of irregular border crossings decreasing by 28% to 98,600.
“On the Channel route, roughly 58,300 irregular border crossings have been detected on both sides so far in 2023. This is a 14% decrease on the same period in 2022,” the EU border agency said.
Frontex has also drawn attention to the danger posed by illegal maritime migration, as over 2,511 people went missing in the Mediterranean in 2023, while trying to relocate this way.
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