The European Union has been struggling to cope with a surge of migrants fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East and Africa. The high season has not yet begun, and already hundreds have died trying to cross the Mediterranean. Thousands more have arrived on the Continent to seek protection. In response, the EU is planning a combined military campaign by air, sea, and possibly land against the smuggling networks. Can such a plan succeed? And could the lessons of Europe be applied to our own migration crisis along the Southern border?
According to a recent article about the EU plan:
The campaign’s aim is defined as “to disrupt the business model of the smugglers, achieved by undertaking systematic efforts to identify, seize/capture, and destroy vessels and assets before they are used by smugglers … The operation will need to be phased in and will be heavily dependent on intelligence.
Military operations would focus on actions “inside Libya’s internal and territorial waters and the coast,” and possibly “ashore,” as well.
The downsides of such an operation are fairly obvious. As an EU planning document admits, the campaign could result in innocent people being killed: “Boarding operations against smugglers in the presence of migrants has a high risk of collateral damage including the loss of life.” There are also difficult practical problems—smugglers frequently rent boats from fisherman and then fill the boat with migrants shortly before they sail. So there is little time to identify which boats are being used for human cargo and to neutralize them before people are aboard. Also, the Libyan coast is dangerous. Different militias control different parts of the country, and some have the capacity to target European warships and aircraft. Finally, and maybe most significantly, the migrants are desperate people fleeing for their lives, so it is unclear whether they would be dissuaded from their journey if it were marginally more difficult.
On the other hand, large numbers of people are already dying at sea (about 2,000 so far this year), and there is little doubt that the impunity the smugglers enjoy encourages them to continue their activities. There is also some evidence that the smugglers are encouraging certain people to make the journey, when they would be better off staying put. But the question is, Can military force make the situation better?
First, I suppose it depends on how we define “better.” If we mean that Europe will have to deal with fewer migrants, then military action against the smugglers may make things “better,” at least to some degree. We’ve seen this story before in the militarization of the drug war. The costs to the drug smugglers goes up, the cost of the product goes up, and—perhaps—fewer drugs get through. The key difference between smuggling humans and smuggling drugs is that each person must be able to pay for the cost of his trip. If the cost to smuggle drugs goes up, the users pay, but if the cost of human trafficking goes up, the trafficked people must pay. If action against the traffickers increases the cost of passage, maybe fewer people will be able to afford the journey. And if fewer migrants reach Europe, the situation will be “better” in that Europe will not have to deal with it.
But if “better” means actually addressing the problem, interdicting smugglers will likely not make the situation any better. If the asylum seekers were merely economic migrants, they might be dissuaded from making the trip. But most of the people crossing the Med are fleeing for their lives–they are from places like Syria and Eritrea, where return to the home country is unthinkable. Cutting off the route to Europe will–at best–force them to go somewhere else.
While Europe does bear some of the blame for the current mess in the Middle East and Africa (due to colonialism and economic exploitation), I don’t believe that the Europeans can be expected to accept every migrant who come their way. However, I do think Europe–and the rest of the world–has a moral obligation to help legitimate refugees fleeing violence and persecution. Perhaps European interests would be better served by using its military and logistical power to establish better safe havens for refugees, and to create an orderly resettlement process for those who will likely never return home.
And what of America? Is there a military solution to our own migrant crisis? Much of the migration to our country is driven by gang and cartel violence in Central America and Mexico. Last year, the Congressional Research Service published a report about the U.S. government’s role in combating Central American gangs. The report details our efforts on the law enforcement and preventative sides of the gang problem. In short, it seems that a law enforcement-only approach (such as Mano Duro in El Salvador) is not as effective as a more holistic approach, and so the effectiveness of throwing additional military forces against the gangs seems doubtful.
Perhaps the border itself could be further militarized, but it is difficult to see how this would make much difference either. The number of agents at the border is at an all time high, and the number of apprehensions has dropped to 1970s levels (indicating fewer people attempting to enter illegally). The bigger problem these days is the large number of people surrendering at the border and requesting asylum, and of course this is not a problem amenable to a military solution.
For us and for the Europeans, the influx of asylum seekers presents a serious challenge. Rather than using military force to attack smugglers and deflect the problem, we would be better off addressing root causes and protecting vulnerable people from harm.
Hi Jason:
Thank you very for your all unlimited help.
I submitted our EAD application on 8, 10th.we submitted 4 application. But we received 3 letters for 3 application says it is rejected due to didn’t sign properly. One letter came with notice says ” application was received and will process”. we resubmitted 3 application with correct signature on Aug, 18th and received the notice says they will process the case. But we didn’t receive work permit yet. I checked the status today,it says” additional evidence request notice was sent”. That is for my wife ,my son and my daughter. Mine says” case was received”. Do you think my work permit will have to wait till additional evidence received by USCIS? or they will process my case?
Thank you
Once you receive the letter explaining what evidence is needed, you can respond. After they get the response, they should issue the EADs. If you are having trouble with this, you might want to consult an attorney for help. Good luck, Jason
Hi Jason:
I submitted my EAD application on 8, 10th.But i still didn’t get the card. I checked status, it says” case was received ” till today. I wonder why it takes so long.
Thank you
The initial EAD usually takes 1 to 3 months. The renewals can be much slower. Take care, Jason
The EU dictatorship validates the invasion
The last straw in the organised “migrant crisis” has been drawn yesterday.
The EU, or rather, the unelected bodies representing only themselves, corporate and foreign interests, as it has now become a rule, have decided unilaterally to “share” the so called “refugees” (75% of them being fake refugees, male between 20 and 40, and real profiteers including a sizable number of criminals and jihad militants), between all the ”members” of this mockery that became the “European union”.
Despite the refusal of this sinister plan by several countries like Slovakia, Hungary or the Czech Republic, countries who know only too well what it is to be under the yoke of foreign oppression and being invaded after having lived under the occupation of the Turks, the Hapsburgs, the Nazis and the soviets.
But here again, they are back, like 75 years ago, the Germans have managed to impose a de facto invasion of Europe even to those who are still opposing it, even to the courageous countries who, alone are fighting against the invasion, for their sake and for Europe survival.
For those who still had any shed of doubt about what the EU really is, here is another example of the real nature of this unaccountable monster: a faceless totalitarian regime bent on its main goal through the destruction of freedom and democracy, the obliteration of national identities, the constant demolition of states sovereignty:
The annihilation of European people and European civilisation, the destruction of Europe.
Again, like in the case of the “banking” crisis, the bailouts of private firms by public money, rewarded by austerity for the people and abundance for the very few, in the case of Cyprus great bank robbery, in the case of the pillaging of Greece, happening now in front of our very eyes as the public services are sold to German corporations, with the complicity of the wet banger Tsipras and his mock anti-austerity party Syriza, again, they are forcing on us something the vast majority of us don’t want.
This time they force on us millions of illegal aliens, 95% of them muslims, 75% men and fake refugees from countries that are not even at war (tens of thousands of Albanians registered on asylum seekers lists for Germany, being one of the sickest joke of this masquerade).
Helped by compliant media and corrupted journalists who have launched since months one of the biggest propaganda campaign ever destined to make naïve people believe that this invasion is a “refugee” crisis, despite the evidence, despite the obvious, despite the numbers, despite any kind of common sense.
In appearance, they seem to have succeeded to convince those who, as usual, are easily convinced by making them cry or by appealing to their feelings, playing with their too easy to trigger pity by staging the death of a toddler; using a dead child image to shut down every attempt at analysis, to replace the act of thinking by forged feelings. To kill any debate or possible different opinion.
Until everybody realized the father was a human trafficker himself. But who cares, as long as most media don’t mention it, they assume that the majority don’t know about it.
In reality, the vast majority of Europeans are not dupe, contrary to the very few who shake their little flags of welcome to invaders in Germany, the vast majority of Germans now hate Angela Merkel, as one of the main responsible of this situation and the main perpetrator of the future demise of Germany.
We knew Merkel was the puppet of big finance and big corporations, we didn’t realize she also answered to the globalist political agenda of those who want to destroy our countries homogeneity by flooding us with aliens that will never adapt or assimilate in our cultures.
Divide to better reign, a gift to all the corporate exploiters of the human race, local German workers wages will have to be dropped to match the million new slave labour coming into the land!
Soon Germans will have to be expel from their homes to make place for the scum coming in.
Merkel’s good saudi friends while taking absolutely no “refugees” are already on the starting blocks to finance mosques all over the country. With support for Isis with their friend Erdogan, financing fundamentalism, invading Europe belongs to their global plan of world conquest. With the help of the usual traitors in Europe and the USA.
Already we hear about children and women being raped by those nice “refugees”, completely covered up of course by mainstream media in order to hide the ugly truth from the people who have no time, no intention and no courage to inform themselves.
Europeans, some of the most educated people on earth, aren’t not even as smart as their forebears in the middle ages, they fell for the same lies, they believe the same propaganda and despite their supposed knowledge, most are unable to think by themselves.
Or so it seems, as the vast majority don’t believe anymore in the gigantic bullshit spread on them by the Euronews, BBC, F24, CNN, NYT, Spiegel and all the other propaganda branches of corporations and political lobbies.
The media establishment in Europe, controlled by a tiny minority who tries to impose their opinion on the majority, often succeed, but are more and more at odds with their targets since what they broadcast simply makes less and less sense.
Why would any country in the world suppress its borders and let anybody in?
Why would you let people in just because they impose themselves at the door?
Why wouldn’t you use your army to protect the integrity of your land? What’s an army for then?
Why would you even help people to break in and to settle in your own house?
People know it doesn’t make sense. They know that they are being deceived, that their voice and votes are being ignored.
They are being taken for real idiots. And it works for many of them, those who genuinely believe they should let illegal aliens in, in complete disregard for the future of their countries.
The message sent by the totalitarian oligarchs in Brussels, Berlin or Paris to the rest of the world is clear: Europe is weak, it has no frontiers, its “leaders” are blind and corrupt enough, there is no need of an army to invade this continent. So let’s go, throw your passport off and pretend to come from Syria.
The merkels and Hollandes of this world are betraying the mandates that has been given to them by citizens. They are betraying their countries. They are betraying Europe and its people.
They have shown all along how much they don’t care and despise the citizens they are supposed to represent.
Merkel has decided on her own to “welcome” the invaders, she has also decided to force quotas on the other EU countries. Hollande, as a good pet was the first to follow.
Even Hitler didn’t have such an easy task with Vichy’s government during WW2.
Hollande, the new Laval of our times is always too pleased to follow his masters orders as we see him everyday serving Washington and Ryad interests and political agendas for Russia, Syria and the middle east.
These people have betrayed us, they have betrayed their countries, they have betrayed their forebears, they have betrayed Europe and the Europeans.
They deserve to vanish, they need to go.
Allowing a disguised invasion on their own countries, organising, helping and fuelling this invasion will count for the future.
Merkel, Hollande, Juncker, and the oligarchs in Brussels will be held accountable, they will pay for their crimes, they will answer for their treason!
I agree that there are legitimate concerns in accepting large numbers of refugees into Europe. But if you think refugees fleeing war (or even poor economic conditions) are invaders, you would do well to reacquaint yourself with reality.
The so called “migrants/refugees” (and financial) crisis” explained :
1/ It is necessary that a permanent threat of unemployment weighs on workers to contain their claims
2/ We must let in immigrants and foreign labour to lower local wage levels.
3/ In 2012 Peter Sutherland, the non-executive chairman of GOLDMAN SACHS and the UN’s SPECIAL representative for MIGRATION, URGED the EU to “do its best to undermine” the “homogeneity” of its member states and create “multicultural states” in Europe.
And now, some of the victims are even demonstrating to ask for more “refugees”…
While, taxpayers are supporting the cost of incompetent or collusive and inept policies, there was and is a very simple solution to solve the crisis
It is something every country has in the world.
It is something that allows since millenniums countries to stay independent and push back invasions.
This is something sovereign countries like Australia is now using very smartly to deter illegal immigrants and traffickers.
It’s simple, it’s call a frontier.
The only reason most governments Europe haven’t reinstated real and permanent frontiers in face of what can only be called an invasion, is corruption.
I would not insult the intelligence of our political “leaders”, so it must be something else: corruption.
It’s obvious that Merkel, Hollande, Renzi and the others are not serving the interests of their countries and people but those of foreign powers, organisations and corporations.
EU should ‘undermine national homogeneity’ says UN migration chief
BBC News
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-18519395
Except that many nations believe that promoting human rights and helping people in need is part of their national interest. Leaving people to die because you are concerned about keeping your nation “homogeneous” seems a sad commentary on your nation’s morality.
If you look at some peaceful, modern yet without ignoring their past and traditions, low crime, highly respectful and successful countries, you’ll find countries like Japan. Homogeneity being one of the reasons of such a success compared to our schizophrenic societies where nobody knows anymore its own history.
You take care of your family and friends first, then the rest of the planet if you can…
Japan is not as homogeneous as it’s made out to be. The US is not homogenous at all and – at least by certain measures – we are the most successful country on Earth. I get your point, though, but I think it is more to do with social cohesiveness than homogeneity. The two might be connected in some cases, but they are not the same.
The goal is to divide to better reign. Homogeneity is the cement of any society. If people in a community, quarter, town, village feel linked together by the same roots, culture, civilisation, values, it will be more difficult for those who want to remove their rights, exploit them or impose them other values to do so.
People sharing the same values, culture, background aren’t as easy to control than people sharing only the same territorial space and nothing else.
This is what is happening in countries like England, France or Sweden where entire pans of cities and land are now de facto controlled by foreign ideologies and elements and deserted by locals who flee violence and discrimination in their own countries.
This is what is hiding behind this so called “refugee, migrant” crisis.
[…] plan was proposed alongside EU military proposals presented to the UN Security Council, which would authorize military action against migrant […]
Yes, the military situation will help- but “help” as you defined it as the EU not having to deal with large number of migrants. When the EU politicians/public talk about military force “helping” the refugee problem, my gut instinct is that “help” is defined as above- to merely stop the refugees from coming into the EU. Some Europeans have criticized the EU action that toppled Kadafi, who had an iron grip on the country and patrolled the coastline. He had warned that EU that if he goes, Europe will be flooded by Africans. Kadafi went, and now Europe is flooded with Africans. Its true that if Kadafi was still alive, the lives of the refugees would still be bad- but the upside was that Kadafi served as a barrier so that the EU wouldn’t have a refugee “problem”.
Actually “solving” the problem will basically require nation building so that Somalia, Lybia, Syria, etc… have a Western standard of living- a rather expensive propositio. Nation building to the point that the Western world cannot simply send advisors and money into these countries. The world would have to take control away from the local people in order to create the institutions necessary for a better living standard (Iraq and Afghanistan serving as failed examples when money is thrown at countries and squandered by local governmental incompetence). You’re talking about a re-colonization of that part of the world. Even then, you must consider that the Western ideals of governance, separation of religion and state, economics, personal freedoms, etc.. will clash with people that know no other way of life aside from tribalism.
I guess I am slightly more optimistic than you – I don’t think Somalia, Eritrea, etc need to be raised up to Western standards to stop most of the migration. If violence is ended and people have some sense that they can live safely and raise families, much of the migration would end. On the other hand, how we get to that point, I don’t know. Simply finding places to put refugees (whether in Europe or somewhere else) seems a band aid on a gaping wound. I suppose I would like to see more effective arms and trade embargoes against bad actors, positive incentives for good governance and anti-corruption, and the like. I feel that generally, military solutions and nation building do not work, but sometimes military intervention is needed. You could write a thousand books on the subject and not reach a solution, but in short, if we and Europe are not working on root causes, I think the problem of mass migration will persist.
Could you clarify what evidence you’re referring to when you say there is “some evidence that the smugglers are encouraging certain people to make the journey, when they would be better off staying put”? I’ve read the linked article three times, and I still can’t find it.
Sorry – I was actually referring to a photo and caption in the article about how smugglers use Facebook to make themselves seem like a legitimate travel agency, and hence make the journey seem like legitimate and safe travel (here is the better link: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/may/08/people-smugglers-using-facebook-to-lure-migrants-into-italy-trips). Whether any of the refugees believe this BS, I do not know.
Well, that article itself suggests they don’t. It seems to me that they’re competing with other smugglers for people who are intending to leave anyway, rather than targeting people who would otherwise stay where they are.
Sorry for nitpicking, I’m just very wary of how the EU governments seem to be planting stories that paint this crisis as one created by evil people traffickers. Which, as James Dan says, lets them off the hook for their own responsibilities, as well as helping them justify the military “solution”.
It’s a fair point, and that is why I tried to be cautions (“some evidence”), but maybe I overstate the evidence. Many people would probably come anyway, but the smugglers do have an incentive to encourage people to travel – money. I do agree with you that the smugglers are not the main problem, or even close to the main problem. People are desperate to flee, and so if you stop one smuggling route, another will rise in its place.
There has been a huge surge in asylum applications within the EU in the past year or so. Monthly receipts have been hovering around the 70,000 mark for over 8 months now. By way of comparison, the US is getting roughly the same number of asylum applications in a year as the EU is receiving in a month. And in terms of geographic size and population, the EU (depending on how you define it) is roughly equal to the US.
If you add in all the credible fear claims that USCIS is adjudicating, along with the asylum applications, it doesn’t look quite so lopsided, but the EU is still dealing with five or six times the numbers as the US. We freaked out when 60,000 unaccompanied children showed up at the border in the space of a year. Europe is seeing that many in a matter of months.
Just saying…
I have no doubt that it is a major crisis. The question here is, will a military intervention help? I doubt it will do anything other than shift the problem to somewhere else. But maybe that is the best that Europe (and the US) can do since actually solving the problem seems so difficult.