EU Identifies Seven "Safe" Countries in Migrant Return Strategy

The European Union's recent designation of seven countries—including Kosovo, Bangladesh, and Colombia—as "safe" aims to streamline asylum applications for migrants from these regions. While Italy celebrates the decision, highlighting its potential to manage migration more effectively, human rights groups caution against oversimplifying the safety of these nations due to existing rights violations.

The European Union (EU) has officially recognized seven countries it classifies as "safe" in a strategy aimed at expediting asylum claims from these regions. The countries identified—Kosovo, Bangladesh, Colombia, Egypt, India, Morocco, and Tunisia—will allow for a fast-tracked asylum process lasting up to three months, primarily aimed at those likely to have their claims denied.

Markus Lammert from the European Commission stated that this list is 'dynamic', indicating that it could be updated to include new nations or remove those deemed unsafe. The initiative comes in response to the substantial influx of irregular migrants to EU countries starting in 2015, leading to ongoing calls for reforming asylum regulations. A migration and asylum pact was ratified last year, but due to its effective date being June 2026, the EU seeks immediate implementation of two rules aimed at accelerating processing times and returns.

Countries from which fewer than one in five asylum applications are approved will also be subjected to fast-tracked processing. Prospective EU candidates will automatically be considered safe, albeit with exceptions for countries experiencing conflict such as Ukraine. This recent policy shift has found support from nations like Italy, which has been significantly affected by migrant arrivals in recent years, while others like Germany have enacted stricter border controls to manage the situation.

Giorgia Meloni's right-wing government in Italy has welcomed this decision. Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi has highlighted the inclusion of Bangladesh, Egypt, and Tunisia on the safe list as a key victory amidst ideological opposition. Previous legal proceedings have seen Italian courts prevent the government from designating some migrants from these nations as safe, based on rulings from the European Court of Justice regarding the treatment of minorities in those countries.

However, human rights organizations have voiced concerns over the classification of these nations as safe. EuroMed Rights has labeled this approach as misleading, pointing to significant documented human rights infractions and inadequate protections for both citizens and migrants in many of the listed countries. In response, Lammert emphasized that EU law mandates individual assessments for each asylum application, ensuring that fundamental human rights are upheld.

As the proposals await approval from the European Parliament and member states, the debate over how best to manage migration within the EU continues to evolve, highlighting the delicate balance between national interests, humanitarian concerns, and the realities faced by asylum seekers.