Le migrazioni internazionali nei paesi meridionali dell'Unione europea: continuità e cambiamenti, prima e dopo la crisi

During the last quarter of the twentieth century, the Southern European countries of the European Union have become transit or final destination of significant international migration flows from less affluent countries of the world. Traditional origins of transoceanic or European migration, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Greece have become a significant destination of foreign immigration, although with timing, dynamics and models quite different. In particular, in the two decades around the turn of the new century these Southern European countries were affected by immigration of unexpected size and never experienced in their contemporary history. The economic crisis of recent years could probably represent a turning point. In this period, the Southern European countries are showing their dual role as lands of emigration of their citizens and area of immigration of foreigners. Changes are obviously taking place in terms of size and characteristics of migration flows. The paper aims to analyse the evolution of the migration phenomenon in these countries since the nineties, highlighting main features, characteristics and role within Mediterranean migrations before and during the economic crisis. In this framework, the paper wants to verify the existence and the characteristics of the Mediterranean model of migration, proposed and discussed by many authors. As regards the policy impact of the paper, the definition of the characteristics of international migration is the first step for the construction of an effective migration policy.