Source: European Parliament
Question for written answer E-000822/2025
to the Commission
Rule 144
Alice Kuhnke (Verts/ALE)
An investigation published in Balkan Insight and Le Monde[1], based largely on internal Frontex documents, found evidence that senior Frontex and Commission officials are aware of widespread fundamental rights violations in Frontex operations in Bulgaria. According to serious incident reports issued by Frontex’s Fundamental Rights Officer (FRO), several Frontex officers personally witnessed multiple cases of violent pushbacks and abuse of migrants by Bulgarian border police. Frontex officers not only failed to intervene in these incidents, but were also pressured not to report their observations. The FRO reiterated warnings that the agency may, consequently, be implicated in ‘illegal practices’ and that the presence of Frontex ‘is not necessarily a guarantee for fundamental rights compliance’.
- 1.How does the Commission ensure that none of the EU funds made available to Bulgaria for enhancing border surveillance operations are implicated in practices that violate fundamental rights?
- 2.How does the Commission justify providing Bulgaria with additional funds for border surveillance activities, despite being notified by the FRO of widespread rights violations?
- 3.How does the Commission justify Frontex’s expansion of its operations in Bulgaria in the light of the agency’s obligations under Article 46 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1896 to suspend operations when there is evidence of serious or persistent rights violations?
Submitted: 24.2.2025
- [1] https://balkaninsight.com/2024/09/06/eu-border-force-officers-intimidated-into-silence-on-migrant-abuse-in-bulgaria/.