EU pledges swift action on migration crisis

The European Union has pledged to take "bold" and immediate action to tackle the continent's migration crisis after hundreds were feared dead in the Mediterranean when a packed boat carrying migrants capsized near the Italian island of Lampedusa yesterday.

EU foreign ministers, including Minister for Foreign Affairs Charlie Flanagan, gather in Luxembourg today for a scheduled meeting that is expected to be dominated by the migration crisis.

The political situation in Libya will also be under discussion, as the EU tries to formulate a response to the continuing conflict in the north African country that has become one of the main points of departure for migrants fleeing conflict zones.

"What happened . . . off the coast of Italy, what happens every day at the southern border of Europe, is unacceptable for a union that was built on the principles of solidarity, respect for human rights and dignity for all," EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said yesterday.

Ms Mogherini, a former Italian foreign minister, has been pressing EU foreign ministers to take a more active role in the Libyan crisis.

European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker said he would convene a special meeting of EU foreign and justice ministers to respond to the crisis.

“The European Union as a whole has a moral and humanitarian obligation to act,” the European Commission said in a statement.

The head of the European Parliament, Martin Schulz, also called on the European Union to act.

“Europe can do more and Europe must do more. Without a genuine common European approach based on solidarity, which offers people the opportunity to come to Europe legally . . . the next tragedy is only a matter of time. It is more than time to finally change our refugee and migration policies.”

Human trafficking

The European Union has struggled to formulate a cohesive response to the problem of human trafficking into Europe, which has swelled since the Arab Spring, with many migrants choosing to travel to Europe by sea rather than through the land borders to the east.

Italian authorities say they have picked up almost 11,000 migrants so far this year in Italian waters, with the number of migrants arriving in southern Europe expected to soar as weather conditions improve in the coming months.

The European Commission is due to come forward with a new migration strategy in mid-May, with indications that immigrant-processing centres could be established in countries of origin such as Libya or Eritrea.

Countries such as Greece, Italy and Malta have long argued that they carry an unfair burden in terms of illegal immigration into Europe, a situation that is exacerbated by the so-called Dublin convention, an EU law which states that asylum seekers must apply for asylum in their country of arrival.

Greek authorities said earlier this month that the number of illegal migrants arriving in Greece by sea tripled in the first three months of this year, compared to the same period last year. Yesterday, Amnesty International called on European governments to "face their responsibilities" and set up a multi-country humanitarian operation.

‘Man-made tragedy’

“What we are witnessing in the Mediterranean is a man-made tragedy of appalling proportions. These latest deaths at sea come as a shock, but not a surprise,” said

John Dalhuisen

, head of Amnesty for Europe and Central Asia.

The EU’s search-and-rescue system Triton was established late last year, but is seen as inadequate to deal with the migration crisis. A year-long Italian operation, Mare Nostrum, which ended earlier this year, is widely credited with saving hundreds of thousands of lives, but had three times the budget of Triton.