The securitization of European Union immigration policy. (c2011)

Abstract

This thesis examines the phenomenon of securitization in European Union immigration and asylum policy. It seeks to analyze the nature and origins of the externalization of threat in the context of safeguarding Europe’s internal security. It explores the extent to which the rhetoric of securitization has been utilized in the development of migration policies since the attacks of 9/11. Through policy and discourse analysis, it explores the institutionalization of securitization within the main bodies of the European Union. The thesis shows that national security provisions in immigration legislation has enabled the near militarization of the external borders of the Union and compromised human rights obligations towards non-EU citizens. The research presented reveals however that securitization did not considerably accelerate after the infamous terrorist attacks on European soil. This leads to the conclusion that the trend of securitization is not entirely new but has roots in the wider objectives of the European Union. Nevertheless, the thesis concludes that securitization is apparent in both EU discourse and policy to questionable levels under the pretext of preserving internal security of the Union.