The flight to Europe

The asylum issue is a difficult issue for EU member states. On the right, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani. TT

   

The flight to Europe  

Migrant pact stopped at the last moment: Italy said no  

 

The stage was set for an agreement on the migration issue within the EU. But at the last moment member state Italy pulled the handbrake, writes Politico. However, 

 

EU Commissioner Ylva Johansson (S) - who is responsible for "internal affairs" in the Union - is said to be certain that there will be an agreement in the coming days.  

 

And she is not alone. 

 

- Italy has not said no, we have only asked for more time, says Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani.  

 

Along the process, several countries have opposed an agreement. According to information provided to The Guardian, the differences of opinion should concern, among other things, what conditions should prevail in migrant camps and what role voluntary organizations should be allowed to play there.  

 

The migration agreement is expected to stipulate how the responsibility for receiving migrants is to be distributed between Europe's member states and what can be demanded from countries that refuse to receive them.  

 

Boat with migrants given life jackets by a rescue organization outside Lampedusa. Jeremias Gonzalez / AP  

 

2,500 migrants have died in the Mediterranean so far this year  

 

So far this year, at least 2,500 migrants have died or disappeared in the Mediterranean, AFP reports. That's a big increase compared to 2022, when 1,680 migrants disappeared en route to Europe throughout the year, figures from the UN refugee agency UNHCR show.  

 

Italy, which received the most people on the run, has in an unexpected move slowed down the EU's major migration reform, writes Politico. 

 

It was hoped that an agreement would be reached on Thursday, but according to Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, more time is needed to "examine the content of the proposal from a legal point of view".