Security and migration officials from six Western Balkans nations say they want to work together with the EU and United Nations agencies to improve migration management.
The European Union and Montenegro have signed an agreement whereby Frontex border guards will be deployed to the non-EU country to deter migrants from arriving irregularly.
The Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) reports rising levels of suffering and misery on migration routes across the Balkans as well as the Mediterranean.
The European Commission has proposed a new aid package worth over €39 million to increase border controls and 'migration management.' They also want to send Frontex officials to non-EU borders in the Balkans.
A Bangladeshi man has died trying to reach France from Greece via the 'Balkan route'. Human smugglers reportedly left the deceased man's body in a hilly area near the Albania-Montenegro border.
An EU report assessing whether Western Balkan countries continue to meet requirements for visa liberalization showed that despite a drop in illegal crossings, improvement is needed in migration management.
A new report has placed a spotlight on the migrant smuggling business and other illicit activities running through the Western Balkans, including drugs and money laundering. The report estimates that the migrant smuggling business alone could be worth up to €50 million per year in the region.
On Saturday, October 17, the Montenegrin coastguard told local radio that they had intercepted 52 migrants “with Turkish citizenship” on their way to Italy.
Hundreds of Bosnians took to the streets Sunday to protest against potential security and health risks posed by migrants sleeping rough in the western town of Bihac. While Bosnia was mostly spared from the migrant crisis of 2015, locals are not happy that they must care for migrants now.
Bosnian authorities have decided to tighten border control in the east of the country to halt migrant arrivals from Serbia and Montenegro, deploying more border police officers.
Authorities in Bosnia said more than a thousand irregular migrants have entered the country since the start of the year. They said arrivals are expected to increase significantly in the spring.
The European Union has signed an agreement with Montenegro for border management of migrant flows in the Balkans area.