Migration weaponization: How governments use refugee flows as strategic leverage

Global Watch | 2025-09-10

In recent years, migration has increasingly been manipulated as a tool of statecraft. Governments facing political or economic disputes with neighbors have deliberately facilitated, redirected or even manufactured refugee flows to exert pressure.

This phenomenon, often described as the weaponization of migration, is not new, but recent cases show how it remains a potent form of coercion in international relations.

One of the most visible recent examples occurred in 2023, when Poland accused Belarus of orchestrating a surge in migrant crossings into the European Union. Minsk was accused of easing travel for migrants from the Middle East and Africa, funneling them toward the European Union (EU) border as retaliation for Western sanctions.

This created a humanitarian crisis in the forests along the frontier, with migrants trapped between border guards. The EU characterized Belarus's actions as "hybrid warfare," underscoring how migration pressure was being used as leverage against European governments.

Political concessions

A similar dynamic unfolded in 2024 when Morocco temporarily loosened border controls into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, leading to thousands of crossings in a matter of days.

Analysts noted this was linked to diplomatic tensions with Spain over its position on Western Sahara. The sudden influx strained local resources and forced Madrid into urgent negotiations with Rabat, demonstrating how migration surges can be used to extract political concessions.

Turkey also has continued to use its position as host of more than 3 million Syrian refugees as a bargaining chip. In 2024, Ankara warned European governments that it could no longer guarantee containment of refugee flows without additional financial support. European officials saw this as a clear reminder of Turkey's ability to "open the gates" if political or economic disputes with Brussels escalated.

These cases reveal why migration is an effective tool of coercion: it creates humanitarian crises that directly affect domestic politics in target countries.

Images of desperate refugees and overwhelmed border facilities fuel polarized debates, weaken governments and force rapid responses. At the same time, the practice raises ethical dilemmas. Migrants themselves often become pawns in geopolitical disputes, caught between states treating human movement as a weapon.

The weaponization of migration is likely to persist as global displacement grows, driven by war, repression and climate change.

While international law affirms the rights of refugees, enforcement mechanisms remain weak, allowing states to exploit migration pressure with little accountability.

For Europe and other regions, this trend underscores the need to develop coordinated strategies that address both humanitarian protection and resilience against political manipulation.