EU Adopts Stricter Migration Policies Similar to Trump Administration Approach

The European Union is implementing new deportation policies that mirror tactics used by the Trump administration, including offshore detention centers and expanded surveillance. Human rights advocates warn these measures are weakening legal protections for migrants and asylum seekers.

BRUSSELS — The European Union has begun implementing stricter migration enforcement measures that closely resemble policies previously used by the Trump administration, drawing criticism from human rights organizations across the 27-member bloc.

Following electoral gains by right-wing political parties in several countries during 2024, the EU has moved to strengthen its migration control policies. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, representing the center-right European People’s Party coalition, has defended these new measures as necessary to avoid repeating the 2015 migration crisis triggered by Syria’s civil war, which brought approximately one million asylum seekers to Europe.

“We have learnt the lessons of the past. And today, we are better equipped,” von der Leyen stated. The comprehensive policy changes, called the Pact on Migration and Asylum, will take effect June 12.

Far-right European political movements have openly endorsed President Donald Trump’s deportation strategies and advocated for the EU to implement comparable approaches. Human rights organizations caution that border authorities are already conducting illegal migrant pushbacks at EU frontiers while undermining existing legal safeguards.

The EU currently invests substantial funds to discourage migration before individuals reach European borders and has facilitated the return of tens of thousands of Africans to their home countries, both voluntarily and through forced deportation.

The current expansion builds upon Italy’s model under Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s hardline immigration policies. Italy operates two migrant detention facilities for asylum seekers whose applications have been rejected in Albania. According to lawmaker Rachele Scarpa, who recently visited one facility housing at least 90 migrants, she encountered individuals who appeared bewildered and frightened.

Additionally, Meloni’s administration has enacted anti-immigration legislation permitting the navy to detain vessels in international waters for up to six months if considered threats to public safety, return intercepted migrants to their origin countries or third nations, and accelerate deportation procedures for foreign nationals with criminal convictions.

According to Bernd Parusel, a researcher with the Swedish Institute for European Policy Studies, an unofficial coalition of EU countries including Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, Denmark and Greece are pursuing agreements for deportation centers.

Dutch European Parliament member Tineke Strik indicated that Kenya is among the nations being approached for such arrangements. She noted that whether intentional or not, these plans mirror Trump’s agreements with countries like El Salvador to accept deported migrants.

Additional nations are considering similar approaches. Sweden’s migration minister has indicated the conservative governing coalition supports establishing processing hubs outside Europe, particularly for Afghan and Syrian asylum seekers.

During Italy’s Winter Olympics, demonstrations occurred regarding the deployment of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents for U.S. delegation security. However, other European voices have commended ICE operations and advocated for creating specialized deportation police units.

The EU border agency Frontex started deploying officers to accompany Belgian police on raids targeting migrants for detention and deportation in 2024. It remains unclear whether similar operations are occurring in other member states.

The European Commission has refused to comment on U.S. federal immigration policies when requested.

In Britain, which departed the EU several years ago, the center-left Labour Party administration has prioritized reducing unauthorized immigration.

The Home Office reported in February that nearly 60,000 individuals had been deported since the government took office in July 2024. Officials said 9,000 arrests were made for unauthorized employment in 2025, representing an increase of more than 50 percent from the previous year.

The principle of non-refoulement under EU and international law prohibits returning individuals to countries where they would face persecution.

However, European immigration enforcement includes pushback operations, where people attempting to enter the EU are forcibly returned across borders without access to asylum processes.

European authorities conduct an average of 221 pushbacks daily, according to a February report from humanitarian organizations. The report documented more than 80,000 pushbacks in 2025, primarily in Italy, Poland, Bulgaria and Latvia.

“Men, women and children — including individuals in critical medical condition — are routinely subjected to beatings, attacks by police dogs, forced stripping, forced river crossings and theft of personal belongings,” the report stated.

Flor Didden, migration policy specialist with Belgian human rights organization 11.11.11, said European agents are brutalizing migrants similar to practices in the U.S., with some agents in Greece even wearing masks.

“The images are shocking and the outrage is justified,” he said regarding the U.S. situation. “But where is that same moral clarity when European border authorities abuse, rob and let people die?”

The organizations have also documented increased use of surveillance technology including drones, thermal cameras and satellites to track migrant movements.

Additional human rights groups warn of deteriorating legal protections.

The EU’s updated migration rules permit expanded police raids in private residences and public areas, along with increased surveillance and racial profiling, according to a February letter to EU institutions from 88 nonprofit organizations, including the Brussels-based Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants.

“We cannot be outraged by ICE in the United States while also supporting these practices in Europe,” said Michele LeVoy, the platform’s director.

Olivia Sundberg Diez, EU migration advocate for Amnesty International, explained that Europe maintains stronger protections for vulnerable migrants compared to the United States but shares similar political momentum toward stricter policies.

“There’s a level of institutions’ and courts’ independence and human rights compliance in Europe that you can’t disregard,” she said. “But the fundamental political impulse is the same, and I worry that the human consequences will be the same.”