The interior ministers of
Germany and France on Monday called on Italy to respect EU
regulations on asylum seekers.
"Many of the refugees disembarking in Italy are headed to
north European countries," the interior ministers said in a
joint note after a bilateral meeting on Sunday.
EU regulations say "migrants must be processed in the first
European port of entry," the ministers pointed out.
The EU last week agreed to replace Italy's Mare
Nostrum (Our Sea) migrant search-and-rescue operation in the
Mediterranean with an expanded version of European border agency
Frontex.
While applauding Italy's efforts to save the lives of
people fleeing wars in Africa and the Middle East, it has
criticized the fact that Italian authorities do not process the
newcomers, leaving them to languish in migrant reception centers
for months on end, officials said.
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