An Analysis of Competing Complexities of Search and Rescue Operations on the Mediterranean Sea

The Mediterranean Sea has become a locus of international attention as a "migrant graveyard," with over 3,000 annually reported deaths and disappearances. It is a microcosm of the complexities of multilateral governance, civil society, grassroots humanitarian action, and the tension between security and human rights protections. A wealth of actors are involved in maritime search and rescue (SAR) operations, contributing to a dynamic array of collaborative, oppositional, and competitive relationships at sea and on land. This study will investigate the reality of sea migration by considering overlapping jurisdictions, competing interests, border externalization, and varying obligations per international conventions or treaties. It will build upon a growing body of literature by examining recent case studies of rescues, standoffs, and shipwrecks in light of general trends. The 'migration crisis' on the Mediterranean Sea has persisted in European consciousness since before 2014, allowing an ad-hoc, reflexive approach by governments without a comprehensive framework. Such sustained 'crisis' operations cost thousands of lives each year, subjecting many to death at sea, life in detention camps, or sub-human existence. It neglects to address the fact of repeated patterns in rescue and strategic nonaction. My study, by extrapolating concrete patterns and de-facto frameworks in the context of recent SAR cases will attempt to counter the prevailing narrative of 'crisis' as a means to subvert accountability and will provide a sense of coherence to interactions at sea.