Rwanda, Uganda and Uzbekistan are among a dozen countries that EU nations are scouting as potential partners to host so-called "return hubs" for failed asylum-seekers and other initiatives to curb migration, sources told AFP.
The European Union is to allow member states to deport migrants with no right to stay to centres outside the bloc under plans preliminarily approved by governments and the European Parliament despite criticism from human rights groups.
As EU lawmakers and member states iron out details before final adoption, Denmark, Austria, Greece, Germany and the Netherlands said in March they were moving ahead with planning and coordinating.
Part of this entails working out which countries could be open to host such hubs, according to several diplomatic sources and people familiar with the talks.
List 'far from finalised'
Discussions have zoomed in on 12 nations: Rwanda, Ghana, Senegal, Tunisia, Libya, Mauritania, Egypt, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Montenegro, and Ethiopia, the sources said.
Representatives for the EU countries involved declined to comment.
One source cautioned that the list was indicative, far from finalised and non-exhaustive.
Talks are in the very early stages and aimed at testing the waters, the source added.
'Catch-all-phrase'
The countries are being sought for setting up return-hubs or implementing other "innovative solutions" – a catch-all phrase for other similar concepts such as the creation of overseas centres to process asylum applications, the sources said.
European governments have sought a tougher stance amid a souring of public opinion on migration that has fuelled far-right electoral gains across the continent.
With migrant arrivals down in 2025, focus in Brussels has turned to improving the repatriation system, which currently sees about 20% of people ordered to leave actually returned to their country of origin.
Championed by migration hawks, return hubs are among a raft of measures first proposed by the European Commission last year that diplomats expect to be approved in the coming months.
Collapse of Britain-Rwanda migrant deportation deal
Proponents say the hubs could act as a deterrent and discourage migrants from attempting to reach Europe in the first place.
Critics respond that they risk stranding migrants in a legal limbo and point to the hurdles faced by similar projects.
Non-EU Britain abandoned a scheme to deport undocumented migrants to Rwanda, while Italian-run facilities to process migrants in Albania have faced legal challenges and a slow uptake.
A diplomatic source said nations working on the concept had learnt from such experiences and were scouring locations where existing diplomatic ties could facilitate a successful outcome. Denmark has discussed the migrant deportation matter with Rwanda in the past.
Concerns in Africa
"You don't just throw darts on a map," the source said.
While the EU is keen on sending a significant section of migrants to Africa, the citizens of the continent have repeatedly raised concerns about their nations being treated as a "geographical dump area" for persons unwanted by the West.
