The number of unauthorized border crossings is decreasing

In the first nine months of this year, 166,000 people tried to enter the EU illegally, 42% less than in the same period last year, the EU said on Tuesday in Warsaw. European border protection agency, Frontex.

However, the number of unauthorized entry attempts via the EU’s eastern land border, particularly the route through Belarus to Poland and Lithuania, has increased significantly: some 13,200 such attempts have been recorded , an increase of 192%, Frontex said.

In this context, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced on Saturday his intention to temporarily suspend the right to asylum.

The fight against illegal immigration will also be one of the themes of the summit of European leaders on Thursday in Brussels.

In contrast, the number of irregular and unauthorized entries via the Western Balkans route decreased significantly, to just under 17,000, a decrease of 79%.

A similar trend was observed on the Central Mediterranean route, from Libya and Tunisia via Sicily and Malta, with more than 47,700 attempts, a decrease of 64%.

On the route from West Africa across the Atlantic – from Morocco, Senegal and Western Sahara to the Canary Islands – the number of entry attempts has doubled to more than 30,600 compared to the same period last year, Frontex said.