The topic of this term paper are the current EU's migration policies. The international immigration movement has been one of the deliberations in the current challenges which shapes the economic, social and political structure of Europe, particularly since the 2015 Refugee Crisis. This challenge has been taking place through the process called "Arab Spring" by the growing migration flows due to political and economic instabilities existing in North African countries.
The aim of this study was to investigate EU migration policy through securitization by using the securitization theory. The research question is the following: "How did the EU's migration policies transform into a security subject?" The term paper aims to answer this question systematically throughout the following sections. Migration is perceived as a "new threat object" that will be analyzed using the theory of securitization.
This paper has been divided into five sections. The first section seeks to examine the changing nature of policy regulations through migration policies.
The second section is the main analytical part. This section theoretically discusses the fundamental structure of securitization and the Copenhagen School. It indicates the impact of extraordinary measures taken by the EU and developments in Europe's ideological map in an effort to explain this theory. It also facilitates the concept of externalization by examining implementations on the border controls.
The third section accentuates the framework for migration as a security object.
The fourth section focuses on securitization of migration by addressing a parallel way of the supranational process. This section emphasizes that the transition of asylum seekers and immigrants across the Schengen border makes the coherent cooperation of the EU institutions and the member states necessary. Besides, immigation has become a fundamental property both at the national level and also the European Union level. So most importantly, it has been transformed into a subject of "high politics".
Finally, the conclusion provides a summary of the results of the analysis undertaken in the other sections, and the research question will be answered.
Table of Contents
I. Introduction
II. Evolution of the EU’s Migration Policies
III. Securitization of Migration
A. Externalization
B. Copenhagen School
C. The framing of Migration as a securitization subject
D. Supranational Process in the policy area of migration
a) Europeanization
IV. Conclusion
Objectives and Core Themes
This term paper examines how European Union migration policies have evolved into a subject of security, utilizing Securitization Theory to analyze the shift from humanitarian concerns to threat-based policy frameworks.
- The theoretical application of Securitization Theory (Copenhagen School) to migration.
- The historical evolution of EU migration policy and the move toward supranational control.
- The influence of external factors, such as the Arab Spring and the 2015 Refugee Crisis, on EU security perceptions.
- The role of "externalization" and border management in treating migration as a security threat.
- The tension between national sovereignty, fundamental EU values, and collective security measures.
Excerpt from the Book
B. Copenhagen School
Precursor names of the Copenhagen School are Buzan, Waever and Wilde have created the literature through securitization. Buzan and Waever have defined security in two categories (Buzan, Waever, & De Wilde, 1997); national security which centered sovereignty and societal security which centered identity and society. The concept of social security that the focal point of security has shifted to society from state and it regarded both security and threat as a fictionalized structure. In this approach, also the threats intended for identity from now on referred to as a fundamental threat.
The main argument of securitization theory is that security is a speech act and that by describing security subjects as the outcome of security agencies’ illocutionary act (Buzan & Hansen, 2009). The definition of security has constituted different sort of actors by creating threats either introducing them, but finally, it has been used as the tool of power. The most significant component of the securitization process is “speech-act,” “referent object” and “securitizing actors.” By stating that a particular “referent object is” threatened in its existence, a securitizing actor claims a right to extraordinary measures to ensure the referent object’s survival. The issue is then moved out of the sphere of normal politics into the realm of emergency politics, where it can be dealt with swiftly and without the usual (democratic) rules and regulations of policy-making. For security, this means that it no longer has any given pre-existing meaning but that it can be anything a securitizing actor says it is. Security is a social and intersubjective construction.
Summary of Chapters
I. Introduction: Outlines the research focus on how EU migration policies have been transformed into a security subject and introduces the methodological framework of securitization theory.
II. Evolution of the EU’s Migration Policies: Traces the historical development of EU migration governance from the Schengen Agreement to the Stockholm Program, highlighting the trend toward increased intergovernmental and supranational cooperation.
III. Securitization of Migration: Analyzes the theoretical underpinnings of why migration is framed as a security issue, exploring concepts like externalization, the Copenhagen School’s security framework, and the supranational Europeanization of migration policies.
IV. Conclusion: Synthesizes the analysis, reiterating that the perception of migration as a threat is a constructed security issue that influences EU foreign affairs and challenges the Union's founding principles of peace and solidarity.
Keywords
Securitization, Migration Policy, European Union, Copenhagen School, Border Control, Externalization, Supranationalism, Refugee Crisis, Arab Spring, Asylum, Security Studies, Sovereignty, Europeanization, Threat Perception, Migration Management.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research paper?
The paper investigates the transformation of EU migration policies into a subject of security, exploring why and how migration is perceived as a threat within European political discourse.
What are the primary thematic areas covered?
Key themes include the historical development of EU migration laws, the application of Securitization Theory, the concept of border externalization, and the impact of the supranational integration process on migration policy.
What is the primary research question?
The study seeks to answer: "How the EU’s migration policies transformed into security subject?"
Which scientific methodology is utilized?
The author uses Securitization Theory, primarily based on the Copenhagen School, to analyze how specific policy areas are moved from normal politics into the realm of emergency, security-driven politics.
What does the main body of the work address?
It covers the historical timeline of migration agreements, the theoretical definitions of security as a "speech act," and the influence of external events like the 2015 Refugee Crisis and the Arab Spring.
Which keywords best characterize this work?
The work is best characterized by terms such as Securitization, European Union, Migration Policy, Copenhagen School, and Border Control.
How does the "Arab Spring" relate to the securitization of migration in this study?
The author identifies the Arab Spring as a catalyst that intensified migration flows, which the EU subsequently used as a justification for deeper supranational integration and stronger, security-oriented border management.
What role does "externalization" play in EU policy according to the author?
Externalization refers to the strategy of pushing European border controls outward, forcing third-party countries to take responsibility for migration management to protect the European "spectrum" from the outside.
- Citar trabajo
- Hilal Apak (Autor), 2019, How the EU's Migration Policies Transformed into a Security Subject, Múnich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/470019
