The Atlantic Council’s Europe Center will host a virtual panel discussion on the “Bridging borders: The complexities of EU immigration policy in the Balkans.” This event will take place virtually on Monday, December 2 from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. ET.

The European Union (EU) is grappling with pressing immigration challenges as a bloc, with increased pressure from far-right political movements and the use of offshore centers for deportees as part of EU immigration policy strategy. Italy’s recent deal with Albania to process asylum-seekers outside the EU presents a model that policymakers have considered for use across the union.

Against this backdrop, the Europe Center hosts this expert panel to dive deeper into the implications of the EU’s new trend of immigration policies. How will the bloc handle judicial challenges that arise, such as the Italian court decisions ordering the immediate return of the migrants sent to Albania? What are the moral and logistical dilemmas of returning migrants to their countries of origin? And what is the potential role of Western Balkan countries as “return hubs”?

This event is part of the Europe Center’s #BalkansForward Initiative, which promotes the region’s political and economic advancement through Euro-Atlantic integration.

This conversation will take place virtually on ACTV, YouTube, X (formerly known as Twitter), and Facebook. To attend virtually, please register above.