ABSTRACT
This chapter engages with dynamics concerning humanitarian action with irregular migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea towards Europe during the post-crisis, post-Arab Spring and pre-COVID-19 period. The authors’ study elucidates the interaction between states and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) involved in humanitarian action at the time. The study draws on analysis of qualitative data obtained from elite interviews with representatives of the European Union intergovernmental state entity European Border and Coast Guard Agency (also known as Frontex) and NGOs involved in search and rescue (SAR) humanitarian action in Southern Europe and in the Mediterrranean Sea at the time of the study. The main findings of this study are that the intersection of geopolitical factors, Europeanization and national political factors, ranging from war to national government policy towards irregular migration, play an important role in policy setting and implementation; SAR NGOs play a vital role in humanitarian action, particularly when state agencies are deemed as not offering enough humanitarian support; NGOs sometimes complement and at other times replace state actors in humanitarian action, but state support is imperative for vital action such as disembarkation of migrants.
