“Cooperation with North African countries has certainly played a role in reducing arrivals,” said Helena Hahn, an expert at the European Policy Centre think tank.

The EU has sought to shutter access at key entry points, said Helena Hahn, an expert at the European Policy Centre think tank.

"The consensus was essentially that the (previous) budget wasn't really sufficient in order to meet the challenges and the ambitions that the EU had," says Helena Hahn, a policy analyst at the European Policy Centre in Brussels

Half a year after dictator Bashar Assad was toppled in Syria, some European countries are trying to incentivize Syrians to return voluntarily. Denmark offers hefty return support payments, but most Syrians in the Nordic nation aren't taking up the offer.

Helena Hahn, a migration policy analyst at the European Policy Centre, acknowledges that “the EU is seeing the impacts of its intensified cooperation with third countries… and its route-based actions.”  

"The drop in crossings could be due to multiple factors: Increased policing of borders by Balkan countries, harsh winter conditions that make the journey hard and awareness of widespread risks of human rights violations," says Helena Hahn, Migration and Diversity analyst at the European Policy Centre.

The document obtained by Euractiv reveals that the Commission is considering changing both the 'connection criterion' and how appeals are handled for applications rejected under the safe country rule.

Ahead of the German general election this Sunday, some parties are calling for a clampdown on immigration. What would this mean for the European Union?

“This whole debate around the funding of border fences and walls is a very political one. It’s a question of what kind of political message the EU wants to send”