Italian PM calls for use of navy to stem refugee flow
18.09.2023
Italian Prime Minister Meloni hopes to stem the flow of refugees through a joint naval mission with the EU. However, this is limited by international maritime law. Over the weekend, Meloni and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen visited the island of Lampedusa, where refugee camps are overcrowded.
(Deutsche Welle Chinese website) Italian Prime Minister Meloni asked European Commission President von der Leyen for help, and the latter responded. The two headed to the Italian island of Lampedusa over the weekend. Last week, some 8,000 refugees arrived from Tunisia. Meloni said that the pressure Italy has faced from the refugee flow this year has become unbearable. The far-right politician campaigned on a promise to end refugee flows. Now, the chaos in Lampedusa is adding to her stress.And this is not the first time this yearEmergency situations: In April, about 2,000 refugees arrived in Lampedusa on a single weekend.
The Italian Red Cross and the Lampedusa municipality are working to provide some level of care for the refugees. Police tried to maintain order while the coast guard and local authorities used ferries to transfer refugees to Sicily and the mainland. About half of the 8,000 refugees were able to leave the island of Lampedusa, only 140 kilometers off the coast of Tunisia.
For years, Italy has received personnel and financial aid from the European Union to keep refugee reception camps and registration points, also known as hotspots, running.
EU naval mission?
Meloni released a video late Friday calling on the EU to change its policy course. At the EU summit in June, Meloni said that the best solution was to completely stop the flow of refugees. She hopes to prevent Tunisian ships from docking with the help of the European Union. However, this violates international maritime law. Because the 12 nautical miles area in front of the Tunisian coast is the country’s jurisdiction, neither Italian nor EU ships are allowed to perform tasks here. On the international high seas beyond 12 nautical miles, as long as the refugee ship has the ability to sail, EU naval ships have no right to intervene.
Moreover, it would be difficult for Italy to prevent ships from docking in its ports for long. However, relevant Italian authorities have the right to temporarily refuse ships with navigation capabilities from entering the port on safety grounds and require them to go to other ports. For refugees at sea rescued by rescue boats, the Italian government must indicate a safer port, which may be located further away, such as in northern Italy. Since the beginning of the year, the Italian government has tried to make the activities of private rescue ships more difficult in this way.
But in fact, these measures have little impact on the scale of the refugee flow, because according to the Coast Guard, about 90% of the refugees arrive at Italian ports or on land outside the ports on their own. In the first eight months of this year, some 120,000 refugees are said to have arrived in Italy.
There have also been joint naval missions with the EU in recent years, led by Italy. It’s unclear what Meloni envisions.
The two inspected the situation on Lampedusa Island
Agreement with Tunisia
In July this year, von der Leyen, Meloni and Dutch Prime Minister Rutte visited Tunisia. The country is a major transit point for refugees heading to Europe by boat. The three later announced that they had reached an agreement with the Tunisian president. Tunisia received about 1 billion euros in economic aid, in order to prevent refugees from continuing to Europe. However, how this will be achieved is unclear, especially since Tunisian President Saied has previously announced that the country will not become a refugee camp for the EU.
Meloni also called on the EU to implement the so-called refugee agreement as soon as possible. This is also expected to gain support from von der Leyen. However, EU interior ministers have yet to agree on the final details of the agreement.
If the agreement comes into force within a year or two, it will introduce fast-track procedures and expedited repatriation for a certain number of refugees.In addition, among member statesAssign refugeesIn principle it will also be possible. However, Meloni’s demand to completely stop the flow of refugees is not part of the agreement. In addition, the right-wing nationalist governments of Poland and Hungary are firmly opposed to the agreement.
Meloni said the country’s cabinet will introduce “extraordinary measures” on Monday, which may include extending deportation detention and using the military to operate refugee reception camps on the mainland. Refugees arriving in Italy mostly continue to northern countries such as France, Austria, Germany and the United Kingdom. According to EU law, the country responsible for their registration and possible refugee approval procedures should have been Italy, because the so-called “Dublin Rules” stipulate that the first country where refugees enter the EU is responsible for this. This 30-year-old rule has been challenged by Italy, but has not been revised so far because revisions require the unanimous consent of all EU countries. Most countries on the EU’s external borders and refugee routes refuse to change the rules.
Lampedusa refugee camp overcrowded
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2023-09-18 14:19:49
