Statement for the record for the House Foreign Affairs Committee and Europe Subcommittee on Weaponized Mass Migration: A Threat to Europe and the U.S.

Dear Chairman Shelf, Ranking Member Keating, and Members of the Subcommittee.

On behalf of the George W. Bush Institute, thank you for convening this hearing, “Weaponized Migration: A Threat to Europe and the U.S.”

Over the last decade, weaponized mass migration has emerged as a significant threat to prosperity and security worldwide. Reducing this threat starts by alleviating the factors that force people to leave and punishing the leaders who use chaos and repression to their political advantage.

Ideally, migration should be voluntary, legal, and safe. Unfortunately, millions around the world are forcibly displaced due to instability, persecution, and violence. And the reality is that many don’t have access to formal migration pathways.

Border policies and immigration laws need to quickly process and discern those who are truly persecuted and qualify for asylum from the rest. But tightening border policies alone is not enough. A more effective policy, leading to more secure borders, addresses the instability driving people to leave and punishes the illiberal actors who weaponize migration.

Authoritarian governments and malign non-state entities manipulate unstable environments to their advantage, enticing would-be migrants to the borders of free countries in order to sow political divisions, undermine stable democracies and profit off of unimaginable levels of human suffering.

Russia’s Vladimir Putin and Belarus’s Aliaksandr Lukashenka have led the way, repeatedly manipulating asylum systems, poverty and insecurity, and rising levels of xenophobia and populism to their advantage. From Turkey to Libya to Nicaragua, other leaders have joined them when it suits priorities, learning from their example.

These actors are responsible for fomenting the weaponization of migration, and they also actively profit from the human suffering that they have encouraged. This includes through the enablement of high-level corruption and the exploitation of vulnerable populations, including refugees, via armed conflict, people smuggling, human trafficking, and other nefarious practices. Bad actors cause the conditions that force people to leave and then benefit further by facilitating their movement to free countries, which are forced to process migrants who might not otherwise have left home.

At a time when the world is experiencing the highest number of conflicts since World War II, it is not surprising that we are also seeing the greatest desire to migrate and significant increases in global migration overall.

In communities that have been exploited in weaponized mass migration flows, conflict and corruption endure as some of the most significant drivers of both voluntary and involuntary movement. These factors erode institutions, access to essential services, and undermine even the most basic levels of physical security and rule of law.

In conflict zones around the world, civilian deaths are surging, with women and children particularly impacted. External influences – including actors from Russia, Belarus, China, Libya, Iran, and various Gulf states – are not only meddling in these situations but directly influencing the use of violence and brutality against vulnerable populations. In Africa alone, over 40 million people have been forcibly displaced – a figure that has doubled since 2016. Twelve of the 15 African countries with the highest forced population displacements “have been targets of Russian interventions to undercut democracy,” the Africa Center for Strategic Studies shows.

Moreover, countries like Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Eritrea, Iran, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen rank among the bottom 20% of Transparency International’s Corruptions Perceptions Index. They also comprise notable numbers of irregular migrants to the United Kingdom and European Union. Poor governance, distrust and disaffection with institutions, and corruption are increasingly cited as key influences on outmigration, according to the MIGNEX Project and other studies.

Security and public safety matter. Migration doesn’t inherently undermine those. But violence and instability, even far from our borders, does impact our national security. Most people migrate out of a desire for better – for themselves and their loved ones. Rather than revictimizing individuals who have already been exploited by corrupt, self-serving actors, American and European leaders would see far greater impact via policies and actions that protect at-risk communities and promote security and stability to ensure that people aren’t forced to flee their homelands.

This includes a renewed commitment to effective and accountable foreign assistance and an increased prioritization of support for good governance and anti-corruption initiatives. As research regularly shows, effective targeted investments that improve opportunity, security, and well-being for at-risk populations also reduce stressors that enable forced migration.

Additionally, the U.S. and Europe should be doing everything possible to pressure and penalize both state and non-state actors that weaponize migration and enable widespread conflict and human rights abuses that force innocent civilians to flee, often through irregular pathways. Russia, Belarus, and others strategically engineer migration flows to attempt to destabilize the West and advance their policy goals. And the results have had a devastating impact for vulnerable migrant populations and peace and stability at large. Harsher penalties are needed, sooner rather than later.

We urge Congress and the Administration to work together in partnership with British and European allies to better support at-risk communities and pressure those who are habitually responsible for weaponized migration.