• Research
  • Emissary
  • About
  • Experts
Carnegie Global logoCarnegie lettermark logo
DemocracyIran
  • Donate
{
  "authors": [
    "Erik Brattberg"
  ],
  "type": "legacyinthemedia",
  "centerAffiliationAll": "dc",
  "centers": [
    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace"
  ],
  "collections": [],
  "englishNewsletterAll": "ctw",
  "nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
  "primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
  "programAffiliation": "EP",
  "programs": [
    "Europe"
  ],
  "projects": [],
  "regions": [
    "Middle East",
    "North Africa",
    "Eastern Europe",
    "Western Europe",
    "Iran"
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Democracy",
    "Global Governance"
  ]
}

Source: Getty

In The Media

Europe’s Immigration Quagmire

Inconsistency in European strategy toward migrants largely comes from the need to develop a internal, unified, and regional immigration policy

Link Copied
By Erik Brattberg
Published on Sep 15, 2017
Program mobile hero image

Program

Europe

The Europe Program in Washington explores the political and security developments within Europe, transatlantic relations, and Europe’s global role. Working in coordination with Carnegie Europe in Brussels, the program brings together U.S. and European policymakers and experts on strategic issues facing Europe.

Learn More

Source: KBIA

Speaking on KBIA, Carnegie’s Erik Brattberg discussed how European policy has evolved since the summer of 2015 when the migration crisis exploded in Europe. Regardless of the fact that a migration plan has been adapted to accommodate newfound challenges, it still has its flaws, Brattberg said. He offered as an example the European deal with Turkey, which was largely designed to keep migrants in Turkey in exchange for European aid. A similar plan has been considered with Libya, another country through which a huge number of migrants attempt to enter Europe, but was never replicated because of government and internal instability, he added. 

Inconsistency in European strategy largely comes from the need for the region to develop an internal, unified immigration policy, Brattberg said. He explained that this would be the first step towards resettling and redistributing migrants more equitably throughout the continent. Without such a policy, he added, states like Greece, Italy, and Germany will be forced to bear the brunt of the crisis. All in all, he concluded, this issue is essential to European national sovereignty and is the current focus of the European project.

This interview was originally done by KBIA.

About the Author

Erik Brattberg

Former Director, Europe Program, Fellow

Erik Brattberg was director of the Europe Program and a fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington. He is an expert on European politics and security and transatlantic relations.

    Recent Work

  • Commentary
    How the Transatlantic Relationship Has Evolved, One Year Into the Biden Administration
      • +11

      Cornelius Adebahr, Dan Baer, Rosa Balfour, …

  • Paper
    China’s Influence in Southeastern, Central, and Eastern Europe: Vulnerabilities and Resilience in Four Countries
      • +1

      Erik Brattberg, Philippe Le Corre, Paul Stronski, …

Erik Brattberg
Former Director, Europe Program, Fellow
Erik Brattberg
DemocracyGlobal GovernanceMiddle EastNorth AfricaEastern EuropeWestern EuropeIran

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

More Work from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

  • People standing on rocks in the ocean near the shore, with soldiers in the foreground
    Commentary
    Emissary
    The Migration Wave That Embarrassed Morocco and Rattled Europe

    Most migrants may have left Ceuta, but the effects may linger.

      • Alejandro Rodriguez
      • Sarah Yerkes

      Alejandro Martin Rodriguez, Sarah Yerkes

  • Commentary
    Carnegie Politika
    Russia Is Exporting Its Fuel Crisis to Central Asia

    When faced with fuel shortages in the past, Central Asian governments could always count on additional supplies from Moscow. That safety net no longer exists.

      Galiya Ibragimova

  • Shadowed figure lighting grocery store shelves
    Commentary
    Emissary
    Five Years After His Power Grab, Tunisia’s President Has Only Achieved Failure

    Saied’s main accomplishment has been to destroy a decade’s worth of democratic progress.

      • Sarah Yerkes

      Sarah Yerkes

  • Port cranes at sunset
    Commentary
    Emissary
    The Drone Attack on Egypt and the Widening Middle East War

    The targeting of Damietta Port appears to be more than a mere security message.

      Amr Hamzawy

  • Commentary
    "I Don’t Think Trump Wants to Pull America Out of NATO"

    Does Donald Trump want to redraw the map of the world? Historian and geopolitical thinker Stephen Wertheim tries to parse the logic behind current American foreign policy

      Stephen Wertheim

Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Carnegie global logo, stacked
1779 Massachusetts Avenue NWWashington, DC, 20036-2103Phone: 202 483 7600
  • Research
  • Emissary
  • About
  • Experts
  • Donate
  • Programs
  • Events
  • Blogs
  • Podcasts
  • Contact
  • Annual Reports
  • Careers
  • Privacy
  • For Media
  • Government Resources
Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
© 2026 Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. All rights reserved.