Farrugia at European interior ministers meeting, does not have one-to-one with Salvini
Home Affairs Minister Michael Farrugia attended a meeting for European interior ministers in Austria, with a Department of Information (DOI) statement saying he held private meetings with various counterparts but not with Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini.
Farrugia and Salvini have been at loggerheads over the past few weeks as one migration crisis has followed another. Their exchanges on Twitter have also been picked up by the international media.
But the two – at least according to the DOI – did not have a one-to-one meeting in Austria that could have paved the way for better relations.
The two-day meeting was held in the city of Innsbruck.
Farrugia recently accused Salvini of bullying Malta instead of co-operating with it on migration issues.
In another exchange, Farrugia asked Salvini to check his facts before making false claims in Malta’s regard.
The DOI said that Minister Farrugia had held bilateral talks with Portuguese Minister for Internal Administration Eduardo Cabrita, Cypriot Minister of Interior Constantinos Petrides, Dutch Minister for Migration Mark Harbers, and Spanish Minister of Interior Fernando Grande-Marlaska Gomez. Minister Farrugia also held meetings with European Asylum Support Office (EASO) executive director Jamil Addou and with Frontex executive director Fabrice Leggeri. No mention was made of Salvini. In his address, Farrugia said: “Migration needs to be addressed comprehensively. Finding the right balance between solidarity and responsibility remains a crucial element, and this must include an effective mechanism to ensure that the burden is fairly distributed among member states.”
High on the agenda was the topic of migration, European border protection, and a crisis-resistant asylum system. Discussions were also held on police co-operation, human trafficking and community policing. Over lunch, the ministers discussed the topic of promoting European values, antisemitism and protecting Jewish communities and institutions in Europe.
On migration, Minister Farrugia maintained that the European Union needed to pursue different two strands of work in tandem; the external and internal dimension. The EU, he said, needed to enhance Frontex’s capacity to operate in third countries and to support them on issues such as border control and migrant return.
The minister reiterated that search and rescue was regulated by international law under the auspices of the International Maritime Organization (IMO). Member states must work within those parameters and should in no circumstance try to establish rules or guidelines outside of the IMO framework, he said. He emphasised that the member states carrying out search and rescue activities should not be obliged to also carry all the responsibility for disembarkation and its consequences. Work already done on reforming the Dublin Regulation had to be built upon, he continued, but other measures were necessary to stem the flow of migrants.
The minister also stated that the EU had to offer more support to the Libyan coast guard given that the IMO had formally recognised Libya’s search and rescue region and assets.
Minister Farrugia reminded participants that following the introduction of a code of conduct for NGO ships last year, there was a drastic drop in the number of migrants crossing the Mediterranean. In in line with the conclusions reached by the Council of Ministers, he recommended a clear code of conduct between the EU and those NGO ships eligible to participate in such activities.
Minister Farrugia thanked the eight countries who participated in the adhoc agreement regarding the MV Lifeline. “Let’s be pragmatic in our conclusions and let’s find a solution for all European countries,” concluded the minister.