The German government intends to stop
funding non-governmental organisations (NGOs) conducting migrant
search and rescue missions in the central Mediterranean starting
from 2024 following protests from Italy, Bild newspaper reports.
In the 2023 budget the German foreign ministry had reportedly
allocated around two million euros for NGOs participating in the
so-called civil fleet of vessels operating the the dangerous
stretch of sea between Italy and north Africa.
"Now the U-turn: in the draft 2024 budget, the ministry has not
included the same two million allocation" for NGOs, the paper
writes.
The Bild adds that sources in the Budget Committee claim the
omission "is not an oversight".
"The Chancellery is opposed to the additional payment, and the
foreign ministry thinks the same way," the sources said.
Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz
patched things up at a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the
informal European Council meeting in Granada on Friday following
tensions over migrants.
The row centred on the decision by Germany to fund German NGOs
that carry out search-and-rescue operations in the central
Mediterranean and then disembark rescued the migrants and
refugees in Italy.
There had also been differences between the two States over the
key crisis management section of the new EU pact on migration
and asylum, but agreement was reached on this on Wednesday after
Germany dropped an amendment.
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