The EU border agency Frontex wants to extend its surveillance flights to the Atlantic. This would be a milestone in the externalisation of European migration defence.
According to Frontex, it is holding talks with the Cape Verde authorities about possible aerial surveillance in the sea area off the island. The aim is to detect boats from West Africa on their way to the Canary Islands. This is stated in the answer to a question from MEP Özlem Demirel. It may involve the deployment of aircraft that Frontex leases from private companies. So far, the agency has only started such aerial cooperation with European third countries, most recently in Albania and Montenegro.
A deployment in the Atlantic would be a game changer for European anti-migrant policy. However, specific details are not yet known. When asked by ‘nd’, Frontex explained that the mission was intended to support Spain in its response to irregular arrivals on the Canary Islands and at ‘to help prevent the tragic loss of life along the dangerous Atlantic route from West Africa’. The spokesperson remains tight-lipped on further questions.
The focus of the planned operation is presumably the waters off Senegal and Mauritania. Frontex had originally wanted to conclude status agreements with both countries in order to be authorised to carry out operations in their territorial waters or on land. However, despite previous positive signals, the governments of both countries have already refused to enter into negotiations for a status agreement, meaning that a conclusion is still a long way off.
The planned cooperation with Cape Verde builds on previous operations – in particular the maritime operation ‘Hera’ launched in 2006, which Frontex carried out together with Spain. It consisted of two parts: ‘Hera I’ served to monitor the coasts and departure points in West Africa, ‘Hera II’ to intercept migrant boats on the high seas and repatriate them. It was based on bilateral agreements between Spain and the African countries involved. However, Frontex did not yet have its own aircraft at the time. Cape Verde was therefore involved in monitoring the early detection of boats.
Senegal and Mauritania were operationally involved in ‘Hera II’. Their border troops were deployed on Spanish patrol boats to enable repatriations directly at sea – without systematically establishing identity or examining the need for protection. According to a recent study, around 92 per cent of the people intercepted were returned to the countries involved. Such pushbacks have been considered unlawful at the latest since a judgement by the European Court of Human Rights in 2012.
Future surveillance flights would therefore have to be coordinated with the Senegalese and Mauritanian maritime rescue centres, following the example of an EU deal with Libya. Any boats detected would then be intercepted by their coastguards. Such cooperation was recently suspended due to tensions between the Spanish coastguard and Frontex over the command of operations off the West African states. With the talks with Cape Verde, the border agency could now try to circumvent this blockade – without Spain’s direct involvement.
However, migration on the Atlantic route has recently fallen significantly again. In the first half of 2025, around 11,000 arrivals were registered on the Canary Islands – a decrease of 43 per cent compared to the previous year. According to an internal EU paper, Mauritania is the main country of departure, followed by Senegal. Among the arrivals, people from Mali made up the largest group with 44 per cent, followed by Senegalese nationals with 21 per cent.
Left-wing MP Özlem Demirel sharply criticised the Frontex plans: ‘It’s not about rescue or help, but about isolation and control.’ She pointed out that Frontex was carrying out so-called pullbacks in the Mediterranean ‘with inhumane militias such as the so-called Libyan coastguard’ – in other words, the illegal repatriation of people seeking protection with the help of a third country.
The sea rescue organisation Sea-Watch also voiced its criticism: ‘If Frontex conducts its first flight operation on African soil, for example in Cape Verde, this will be another nail in the coffin of the often proclaimed European humanity,’ the organisation told ‘nd’. Frontex – together with militias – is deliberately preventing fleeing people from arriving in Europe and thus in safety. Instead of financing a state sea rescue service, the EU has for years opted for ‘the state-organised death of people on the run and for the militarisation and externalisation of its borders’.
Published in German in ‘nd’.
Image: There has been a major movement against Frontex in Senegal for some years – the government is also opposed to its deployment in the country (Boza Fii).
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