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The European Commission’s Security Narrative on Belarus’s Instrumentalisation of Migration
Malmö University, Faculty of Culture and Society (KS), Department of Global Political Studies (GPS).
2025 (English)Independent thesis Basic level (degree of Bachelor), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
Abstract [en]

This thesis examines how the European Commission (EC) framed Belarus’s instrumentalisation of migration during the 2021 border crisis as a security threat. It aims to understand what were the discursive strategies that the EC has used, and how the securitization process developed. Using securitization theory (Buzan, Wæver, and de Wilde, 1998) complemented by Balzacq’s (2011) contextual approach, and applying van Dijk’s (1998, 2015) ideological square as framework for critical discourse analysis, it assesses 34 press releases, statements, and speeches released by the institution between the May 2021, when the relation between EU and Belarus deteriorated, and December 2021, when the level of migrants arrival reached levels before the crisis. The analysis finds that there is a narrative of “us vs. them” in the EC’s discourse, that portrays Belarus as a hostile and illegitimate actor, while emphasizing the moral and democratic values upheld by the EU. It also finds that the EC avoided to criticizing some of its actions. While migrants are not directly portrayed as threats, the securitization language used can also indirectly affect the migrants.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2025. , p. 50
Keywords [en]
European Commission; Belarus; instrumentalisation of migration; hybrid attack; securitization theory; ideological square; security discourse; critical discourse analysis
National Category
Political Science (Excluding Peace and Conflict Studies)
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:mau:diva-79034OAI: oai:DiVA.org:mau-79034DiVA, id: diva2:1992424
Educational program
KS GPS International Relations
Supervisors
Examiners
Available from: 2025-08-27 Created: 2025-08-27 Last updated: 2025-08-27Bibliographically approved

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