In view of the increase in irregular migration of people from Tunisia across the Mediterranean towards Europe, the EU and Tunisia have decided to cooperate even more closely on the issue.
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the heads of government of the Netherlands and Italy, Mark Rutte and Giorgia Meloni, and Tunisia’s President Kais Saied announced the signing of a corresponding declaration of intent in Tunis. This means that the EU Commission can initiate financial aid of up to 900 million euros for the economically ailing country in North Africa. In return, Tunisia should take stronger action against people smugglers and illegal crossings in order to reduce the number of people leaving for Europe.
A meeting in June already brought about preliminary agreements
A good month ago, EU politicians were in Tunisia for talks to negotiate the deal. The Italian Prime Minister Meloni in particular pushed for an agreement to stop the migrant boats leaving Tunisia early on on their way to southern Italy and thus to the European Union.
“We have a good package. Now it’s time to implement it,” said von der Leyen, referring to the declaration of intent. Saied said: “We are determined to implement them as soon as possible.” When it came to migration, he spoke of an “inhuman situation” that had to be solved collectively.
The outgoing Dutch Prime Minister Rutte speaks on Twitter of a strategic partnership that will boost economic growth, jobs and future prospects in Tunisia.
The EU Commission wants to make a good 100 million euros available for search and rescue operations and the repatriation of migrants. This corresponds to three times the amount with which Brussels supported Tunis last year on average.
Tunisia is one of the most important transit countries for migrants on their way to Europe. Many come from countries south of the Sahara. This year, migration figures via the Mediterranean route increased massively. As of Friday, the Ministry of the Interior in Rome alone counted more than 75,000 boat people who had arrived on Italy’s coasts since the beginning of the year – in the same period last year there were around 31,900.
qu/kle (dpa, rtr)