The European Union on Monday
took fresh steps to address a migrant and refugee emergency as
EU interior ministers agreed a number of new moves - although
the meeting in Brussels also pointed up persisting, strong
disagreement between member States on quotas.
As Germany predicted a million refugees this year and
Netherlands followed Germany, Austria and Slovakia in restoring
border controls, diplomats said all talk of "mandatory" quotas
would be avoided in order to try to reach an accord.
Germany said an agreement had been reached on sharing out
160,000 migrants and refugees but there was no agreement on the
"modalities".
It said that this would be achieved when EU leaders meet on
October 8.
Interior Minister Angelino Alfano voiced the hope that EU
members would find a deal on redistributing 120,000 migrants and
refugees.
He noted that an accord had been reached on 24,000 from
Italy and 16,000 from Greece and added that "in the end, 40,000
will leave Italy".
Alfano also said Italy was ready to set up registration
'hot spots' provided that a repatriation mechanism would soon
swing into action.
Alfano said: "we have put the Dublin Regulation in crisis,
it was a strategic goal and from the political standpoint the
alarm has rung and they've heard it in Brussels too."
He added that new migrant and refugee centres would have
"certain rules" and would be "strict" because "the issue of
recognition before repatriation is the decisive issue".
Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said that "Italy expects a
permanent and compulsory mechanism of migrant redistribution"
among EU States, including hopefully Britain.
"The recent history of the EU in the Mediterranean is a
history of failures, you have to be honest," he said in London.
French President Francois Hollande called for the
establishment of EU centres for the registration of migrants and
refugees - so called 'hot spots - in Italy, Greece and Hungary.
"Today we'll make it so that the conclusions (of the
meeting of EU interior ministers) enable Europe to respect
its border and have it respected," Hollande said.
"In concrete terms, this means the creation of registration
centres in Greece, Italy and Hungary to avoid what is happening
today.
"That's the position that France and Germany will push
through.
"We'll be extremely vigilant and push extremely hard".
French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said that
"instructions have already been given" to re-establish controls
at the French border with Italy "if a situation identical to
that of some weeks ago repeats itself," referring to thousands
of migrants massed at Ventimiglia.
France on that occasion mustered a large police operation
to stop the migrants.
Alfano responded by saying that "closing the borders
doesn't solve problems".
Alfano said EU border agency Frontex should be tasked with
deporting migrants whose asylum requests are denied.
"In our opinion, Frontex should do the deportations,"
Alfano said on his way into the meeting of EU interior
ministers.
"It should be Europe's responsibility and European money is
needed to organise the repatriations".
The interior ministers approved resettling 40,000 migrants
from Italy (24,000) and Greece (16,000) over two years.
The decision concerns asylum seekers who arrived or will
arrive between August 15 2015 and September 16, 2017.
Ahead of the meeting, the EU's 28 member States gave
official approval for the launch of "phase two" of the EuNavFor
Med naval mission, including the use of force against human
traffickers in the Mediterranean if necessary.
The proposal was approved 'without debate' by the General
Affairs Council.
The mission is expected to be operative by early October.
The naval mission, launched after calls from Italy for
more assistance from the EU in dealing with the migrant
emergency, features the active hunting down and arrest of human
traffickers and the confiscation or destruction of boats.
Pope Francis, meanwhile, said that the Vatican has
identified the migrant families it will host, after he called on
all European Catholic parishes to host at least one family of
refugees.
"Yes, yes, we have them already," Francis told Portugal's
Renascenca radio station when asked about the families the
Vatican will host.
"Cardinal (Angelo) Comastri, my vicar general for the
Vatican, and papal almoner Konrad Krajewski, who works with the
homeless, have already found the two migrant families who will
be hosted in the Vatican".
A convent that becomes a hotel after taking in refugees
must lose its tax-exempt status, the pope went on.
"Some congregations are saying: 'No, now that the convent
is empty we'll turn it into hotel: we can receive (refugees) and
that way we'll get by and earn money'," the pope told
Renascenza.
"Well, if you want to do that, pay the taxes. Otherwise
the business is not clean".
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