Written by Marcin Grajewski
At a special European Council meeting convened on 23 April after up to 900 migrants drowned in the Mediterranean trying to reach Europe from Africa, EU heads of state and government agreed to increase funding for immigration and asylum policies and strengthen EU presence at sea to prevent further loss of life. The leaders said in a statement that the EU member states would fight trafficking of immigrants and reinforce internal solidarity in tackling the problem.
Think tanks have long urged the bloc to be bolder in tackling the problem. This note offers links to recent commentaries, studies and reports on the topic from major international think tanks and research institutes. Some background material from the European Parliamentary Research Service is available here.
Commentaries

Dead in the water: Fixing the EU’s failed approach to Mediterranean migrants
Centre for European Reform, April 23, 2015
Migrants challenge Europe’s comfort Zone
Carnegie Europe, April 23, 2015
What priorities for the new European agenda on migration?
Centre for European Policy Studies, April 22, 2015
The first 100 days of the New Frontex Director
Clingendael, January 23, 2015
Response to immigration crisis in Mediterranean (European foreign policy scorecard)
European Council on Foreign Relations, January, 2015
Why Europe needs to make immigration easier
Friends of Europe, October 9, 2014
Are Europe’s migration funds adequate to meet growing challenges?
Institut Francais des Relations Internationales, September 8, 2014
Mare Europaeum? Tackling Mediterranean migration
Institute for Security Studies, September 4, 2014
Analyses:
Emergenza Mediterraneo e migrazioni: come può rispondere l’Europa?
Istituto per gli Studi di Politica Internazionali, April 20, 2015
Creating a common European future: integration of young migrants in Europe
European Policy Centre, April 13, 2015
The development of EU Policy on immigration and asylum: rethinking coordination and leadership
Migration Policy Institute, March, 2015
The criminalisation of irregular migration in the European Union
Centre for European Policy Studies, February 2015
Understanding transnational dynamics in European immigrant integration policy
Migration Policy Institute, February, 2015
European Union and the geopolitics of migration
Swedish Institute of International Affairs, February, 2015
Three challenges for tomorrow’s EU migration policy: fairness, mobility and narratives
Egmont, January 28, 2015
Whose mare? Rule of law challenges in the field of European border surveillance in the Mediterranean
Centre for European Policy Studies, January 27, 2015
New approaches, alternative avenues and means of access to asylum procedures for persons seeking international protection
Centre for European Policy Studies, January 9, 2015
Integrating EU defence and migration policies in the Mediterranean
Fride, November 12, 2014
EU migration policy – new realities, new opportunities
European Policy Centre, October 1, 2014
Related publications:
The crisis in North Africa. Implications for Europe and options for EU policymakers
Clingendael, April 3, 2015
Evolving patterns and impacts of migration: global societal trends to 2030
Rand Europe, February, 2015
Thank you for nice information
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