Britain’s Labour government has announced a plan to use Kosovo as a ‘return hub’ housing failed channel migrants. This follows the public humiliation of having Albania reject a similar role during Keir Starmer’s joint press conference with Albanian PM Edi Rama on May 16th.
Officially, the EU-subordinate Western Balkan nation is now part of a shortlist of nine countries which ministers are treating as potential destinations for such facilities. They are hoping for a deterrent effect once the hubs are in place, in the style of the previous government’s doomed ‘Rwanda Plan.’
Without even a date set for negotiations, it is uncertain whether anything will come of the proposals. Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani is “open” to discussions about hosting a hub, while the UK Foreign Office, estimates up to 22,000 illegal migrants passed through the western Balkans to enter the European Union in 2024. It is unclear what proportion of these go on to enter Great Britain, particularly using ‘small boat’ crossings.
