Member organizations of the International Network for Immigration Research were invited to hold a public discussion event about the rise of political forces critical of immigration on August 1, 2025 at the MCC Feszt festival in the city of Esztergom, Hungary.
The discussion started from the observation that in the last few years, the Transatlantic community has seen major electoral shifts. Immigration critical parties and politicians have been elected from Washington D.C. to the Hague.
Participants then tackled questions of whether this is enough to change the direction of European and American immigration policies. Is it still possible to repair the damage inflicted by pro-immigration parties and policies? How can countries develop a new approach to immigration and implement more restrictionist policies?
Predicating arguments on the notion that the future of Europe and the West at stake, the discussion examined whether the tide was truly turning, or if the real battle for migration policy was just beginning.
Panelists in the “crucial conversation on the fight for a sensible immigration policy” were
Yonatan Jakubowicz, Founder and Executive Director of the Israeli Immigration Policy Center
Mark Krikorian, Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies (USA)
Nicolas Pouvreau-Monti, Director and Co-founder of the Observatoire de l'Immigration & de la Démographie (France)
Jim Robb, Vice President of NumbersUSA
Viktor Marsai, Executive Director of Migration Research Institute (Hungary).
