If Europe really wanted to halt economic migrants from the sea and to stop their deaths on the ocean, they’d publicly and frequently announce any and all sea rescue operations would halt and that all migrants would be immediately repatriated.

Then they should proceed to do just that. For a little while, drownings would increase. But then they’d fall precipitously as many, many fewer would attempt to cross that way. Ethically, this would be the correct thing to do as it would decrease deaths enormously and help to halt the social decline of Europe.

Of course, neither of those end states is an actual goal of European elites so it’ll never happen.