The European executive keeps in mind the migration crisis that occurred at the end of July 2026 in Ceuta, when thousands of people crossed the border of this Spanish enclave in North Africa by sea and the agency was slow to be mobilized. On Tuesday October 27, the European Union proposed a vast reform of Frontex, the European agency responsible for border surveillance.
In detail, the EU now wants this European force to increase over the next fifteen years to 30,000 border guards, including a reserve of 17,000 agents, at the disposal of member states. Brussels also wants the agency to be able to deploy agents more quickly in the event of a crisis.
This overhaul aims to increase the number of agents and broaden the organization's powers over migrant expulsions. The EU would like Frontex to play a central role in the expulsion of exiles, in particular by involving the agency in future centers for migrants expelled from Europe, which should see the light of day in the coming months.
The agency is also regularly vilified by NGOs, who accuse it of practices of illegal pushbacks of migrants.
According to the Frontex reform project, the agency could in particular be responsible for transferring people from one country to another, outside the EU.
The EU would also like Frontex to play a central role in the expulsion of exiles, notably by involving the agency in future centers for migrants expelled from Europe, which should see the light of day in the coming months.
This is why we are proposing to strengthen Frontex,” argued Ursula von der Leyen.
Brussels also wants the agency to be able to deploy agents more quickly in the event of a crisis.
“It is up to Europe to decide who enters our Union and under what circumstances.