Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: A definition of national security that was once conceived in terms of military prowess has altered. Nowadays the security concerns of a state are more in terms of immigration, oil, terrorism and threats from within. This paper will focus on the issue of immigrants in Europe as the stuff of new high politics because of its link to terrorism and perceived contribution to domestic political instability. Immigration has become a security issue primarily and an economic issue secondarily for many states in Europe. This paper will look at how the national security concerns of France and Germany have changed since 2000 so that immigration issues have become a priority for national security and not nuclear technology, the placement of missiles or the size of the military. In addition, immigration as a national security concern for these countries has not only affected their national policies but EU policies, specifically in the justice and home affairs field. Because of the security concerns of these two powerful states, the EU is constrained in what type of common immigration policies can be passed at the transnational level. The common immigration policies that have been passed at the EU level are most often 'negative' in their implications (meaning restrictive and exclusionary) rather than 'positive' measures that increase the rights and liberties of the legal migrants residing in the EU community. I argue that the national security concerns of the member states are driving this focus on the security element of immigration, and as a result constraining the impact of EU immigration policies and the ability of the EU to create a positive environment for migrants. This inability to create positive rights for legal immigrants, leads to increased illegal migrants and feeds the xenophobic dogma of many right wing parties and newspapers, that migrants are thieves, terrorists, criminals and generally undesirables. I will focus on only two states in Europe, France and Germany as they are large and powerful states in the EU, they participate fully in the EU Justice and home affairs field and they are original members of the EU, who are often said to be the engine of the integration process. I will test this hypothesis by looking at the policies implemented in these countries from 2000 to 2004 and by studying the speeches and reporting of key political officials in the government. I will compare this time period with the period of 1995 to 1999 in order to analyze if any significant change has occurred in the policy output in regards to national security and the politician's comments in this regard. I will also look at the directives and regulations that have been passed by the EU in the area of migration - including asylum, and third country nationals-to assess what types of policies are being passed - negative or positive, in the period of 2000 to 2004. Immigration policy in Germany and France has become the primary concern of interior ministries and those concerned with security. This focus on immigration as a security concern has constrained the EU in its ability to successfully broach immigration concerns common to all the member states, and reinforced the tendency to perceive immigrants as a security threat rather than an economic necessity, and human community.