Former Frontex boss is running as a candidate for right-wing nationalist party in European elections. Japanese space agency reports successful launch of H3 rocket

The former head of the European border protection agency Frontex, Fabrice Leggeri, is running as a candidate for the party of French right-wing nationalist Marine Le Pen in the European elections in June. Leggeri and the Rassemblement National announced their candidacy for third place on the party’s list on Saturday evening. It was said that together they wanted to give the French back control over their migration policy and fight for stricter immigration rules in the EU. According to surveys, Le Pen’s party can hope to do significantly better than President Emmanuel Macron’s government camp in the June 9 European elections.

In April 2022, longtime Frontex boss Leggeri resigned after serious allegations against him and employees. The background was mainly investigations into illegal rejections of migrants in the Mediterranean. Executives at the Warsaw-based agency Frontex are said to have deliberately covered up the fact that Greek border guards were returning refugees to the open Mediterranean. Rejections of people seeking protection at the external borders – so-called pushbacks – are illegal under international law. Non-governmental organizations accuse Frontex of failing to adequately protect the rights of refugees. They identified Leggeri as a major contributor to this practice during his tenure. (sda/dpa)