There is no deal yet, but important steps have been taken to reach agreements with Tunisia on limiting the flow of asylum seekers. Prime Minister Mark Rutte reported this after returning from Tunis. At his weekly press conference, Rutte said he would not come back with the deal, but he was ‘cautiously hopeful’. ‘The EU leaders are under great political pressure,’ says political reporter Sophie van Leeuwen.
The idea is of course a repeat of the successful Turkey deal, says political reporter Sophie van Leeuwen. “We’re going to repeat that one more time and Tunisia will have to stop the refugees on the edge of Europe.”
The prime minister spoke in Tunis with Tunisian president Kais Saied, together with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni. Europe has promised Tunisia 900 million euros if asylum migration from that country to Europe decreases. In addition, the country is already receiving 150 million euros to solve the first problems, such as returning asylum seekers and combating people smuggling. There has been no talk of taking back asylum seekers who have exhausted all legal remedies, Rutte said.
According to Van Leeuwen, the Tunisian economy is doing very badly, ‘so some money can be pumped in there’. According to Van Leeuwen, a trade agreement can be renewed, money will be made available for digitization and green energy in Tunisia. ‘All gifts to that North African country to have a stable partner in that region.’
“They really need Saied and that will cost a lot of money”
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Criticism
Tunisian President Kais Saied was not present at the joint press conference of Meloni, Rutte and von der Leyen. Shortly before the summit, he criticized European plans against illegal migration. According to him, they would turn his country into a border guard for the EU. “The solution will not be at the expense of Tunisia, we cannot be a guardian for their countries,” Saied said during a visit to the port city of Sfax, one of the main departure points for migrants who want to reach Italy by boat.
‘EU leaders are under high political pressure’
According to Van Leeuwen, Saied is a controversial leader. ‘For example, he refuses economic reforms and therefore did not receive a loan from the IMF recently. He has also driven many Africans across the Mediterranean to Europe.’ For example, Saied claims that there is a plot to attack the Tunisian nation state. ‘So this is the man who should help Europe to stop them there.’
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Premature
Van Leeuwen considers it premature to speak of a success as Meloni and Rutte do, ‘because the real Tunisia deal like the Turkey deal is not yet there’. She points out how crucial it is for the VVD leader to stop that migration. ‘It is a major political problem for him, but other EU leaders are also concerned about it. So they already sold it as a success yesterday.’
2023-06-12 05:08:17
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