Western Balkans Annual Risk Analysis 2017

An array of response measures, ranging from coordinated enhancement of border controls by the most affected countries to policy actions supported by the EU, contributed to a marked reduction in the volume of the non-regional migratory flow transiting the Eastern Mediterranean and subsequently the Western Balkans. Overall, on the Western Balkan route, the number of detected illegal border-crossings between border crossing points (BCPs) associated with non-regional migrants decreased in 2016 to roughly 270 000 (down from over 2 million in 2015). The largest share of detections was reported in the first quarter, after which the number of detections was slowly decreasing to reach manageable levels by the end of the year.