The loaded language of von der Leyen’s migration letter

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Welcome to EU Politics Decoded where Benjamin Fox and Eleonora Vasques will bring you a round-up of the latest political news in Europe and beyond every Thursday.

Editor’s Take: The loaded language of Von der Leyen’s migration letter

The expressions ‘illegal migration’ or ‘illegal border crossing’ have been a staple in the anti-immigration narrative for many years. Initially being the mainstay of tabloids and conservative political figures, the highly-charged language has found a new home at the core institutional communication of EU institutions.

The expression ‘illegal border crossing’ is in a letter, seen by Euractiv, that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen sent to the 27 national leaders, ahead of the European Council summit this week.

“We continue to see, time and time again, that the need to work together concerns all Member States. Most recently, Finland has been impacted by illegal border crossing orchestrated by Russia,” von der Leyen wrote in the letter.

Describing migration or border crossings as ‘illegal’ is inaccurate, harmful and against European values, as the UNHCR lays out. A person can be in a country with an ‘irregular’ status, since the breach is in most countries an administrative one, and it does not concern the penal code.

The use of the expression ‘irregular entry’ is among the preferred expressions used by the European Commission itself, as explained in its guidelines.

But what’s in a word? In migration communication, in particular, language is pivotal. The words chosen, and subsequent narratives formed, create the perception of migration based on which politicians shape their actions. This manifests in both policymaking and the (lack of) accountability in brutal and illegal pushbacks at the EU borders.

The thematic association of migrants with illegality is a well-established pattern. Von der Leyen, as the chief of the EU’s executive body, has a responsibility to use the proper legal terms – and not contribute to further inflammation of the debate.

Other words used in the letter contribute to the narrative of threat. In the first paragraph, von der Leyen refers to “instrumentalisation”, describing the strategic actions of a third country to facilitate border crossings for migrants into the EU.

This phenomenon is increasing at the borders with Finland, Lithuania, and Poland, and has been used by Morocco at its border with Spain.

“Measures to respond to so-called ‘instrumentalisation’ by lowering asylum standards have been already tested by some member states. We witnessed systematic abuses as a result, including illegal pushbacks, such as in Latvia and Lithuania since 2021,” EU migration spokesperson for Amnesty International, Olivia Sundberg, told Euractiv.

Countries like Russia, Belarus and Morocco know how to use this issue as a weapon, and the reply of Europe is to find a way to bypass the international law on protection.

Member states are also trying to add measures against instrumentalisation in the migration pact, in particular in the legislative files dedicated to crisis management. Originally a separate legislative proposal, it is now it is one of the potential pivotal points of the pact which von der Leyen is pushing to confirm by the end of the mandate.

Instrumentalisation is linked to another part of the letter, the necessity to collaborate with third countries to contain the influx.

Finding an agreement at any cost is making the EU more and more dependent on the mood of dictators, for instance in North Africa, as we are witnessing with Tunisia – and maybe shortly with Egypt.

“The EU is becoming increasingly dependent on third countries to manage migration, including through agreements aimed at stopping arrivals that do not include meaningful human rights conditions or monitoring,” says Sundberg.

The letter will likely be endorsed by member states during this week’s European Council. But it would be a mistake to imagine that it will advance the EU’s migration policies in form or substance.

Capitals-in-brief

No meaningful progress in the investigation of the Pylos shipwreck, NGOs say. Six months after the tragedy of the Pylos shipwreck of 14 June, where nearly 600 people died, investigations into “credible allegation that the Hellenic Coast Guard’s actions and omissions contributed to the shipwreck […] have made little meaningful progress”, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said in a press release on the anniversary of the six months after the tragedy.

Albanian court halts migrant deal with Italy. Albania’s Constitutional Court has announced the suspension of the ratification of the migrant agreement between Italy and Albania, scheduled for Thursday (14 December), after the opposition filed a case claiming the deal violates the constitution and international conventions.

German government faces backlash over climate spending cuts. Germany’s governing coalition has been criticised after announcing €45 billion of spending cuts and tax rises to help fill the €60 billion hole in the country’s “climate and transformation fund” after the country’s constitutional court in November strengthened the ‘debt brake’ set in the German constitution, by limiting the additional debt that can be justified with an “emergency situation”.

Tusk becomes Polish PM promising ‘light’ after PiS rule. The Polish parliament elected Donald Tusk as prime minister on Monday after his predecessor Mateusz Morawiecki of the previously ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party, failed to obtain a vote of confidence, vowing to bring light to Polish politics after eight years of ‘evil’ PiS rule.

Macron’s immigration bill defeated by National Assembly. A coalition of far-right, conservative and left-wing lawmakers joined forces to inflict a damaging defeat on the French government by rejecting its immigration bill on Monday by 270 votes to 265.

Bulgarian PM rejects Austrian ‘migrants for Schengen’ offer. Bulgarian Prime Minister Nikolai Denkov has rejected a request to accept more migrants on its territory in exchange for Austria lifting its veto on the country’s accession to the Schengen passport free travel area in a Facebook conversation with citizens.

Inside the institutions

EU Parliament and member states reach deal on corporate due diligence law. After all-night negotiations, EU lawmakers agreed a compromise deal on the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), including on the most controversial aspects of the inclusion of finance and obligations to implement climate plans.

MEPs demand clearer role in choosing European Commission president. The European Parliament has demanded a greater role in the election of the European Commission president, calling for a clearer link between the European election results and the leadership of the EU executive.

NGOs cry foul after Commission proposes new law for interest groups. The European Commission has unveiled a new law designed to force interest and lobbying groups working for non-EU actors to register on a transparency register as part of its plans to protect against malign influence in EU politics.

EU climate chief Hoekstra refuses to disclose clients as McKinsey consultant. EU Climate Action Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra has refused to disclose who he consulted for when working for management consultancy McKinsey, in a letter to the European Parliament seen by Euractiv.

EU should re-write aid rules to fund local actors, says aid expert. The EU should re-write its rules on aid that currently prevent it from providing funds to organisations that are not based in the EU, leading aid charity Caritas has urged.

What we are reading

The crisis over Germany’s debt brake has highlighted the need to abandon this political myth, argues Shahin Vallée in the Guardian.

Europe needs Donald Tusk to offer a blueprint on how to roll back the agenda of the nationalist right, writes Rob Picheta for CNN.

The next week in politics

A pivotal migration trilogue will take place next Monday and Tuesday (18-19 December). EU lawmakers will try to strike a deal on the whole files of the migration pact, a goal strongly desired by the Spanish presidency.

Last meetings before the Christmas break at the Council, with Environment Council on Monday (18 December), and Energy Council on Tuesday (19 December)

Green week at the European Parliament next week, where MEPs will be busy in missions outside the EU.