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At the recent EU summit a week ago, European leaders once again agreed to protect the EU's external borders against illegally entering migrants. This meant, in effect, blocking migration across the Mediterranean between Italy and Libya.
The new right-wing populist government in Italy has already taken matters into its own hands. At the end of June, he banned private vessels from bringing the asylum seekers rescued to Italian ports and reached an agreement that Libya is again tasked with rescuing shipwrecked people in their homes. own waters. Previously, Italy badumed responsibility for the entire maritime area between its own coast and the Libyan coast, the navy headquarters coordinating all search and rescue missions
Read more [19459006NowthereisanewstatusquoOn22JuneLibyainformedtheUnitedNationsInternationalMaritimeOrganization(IMO)thatthecountrywasreadytofulfillalltheobligationsarisingfromitsownmaritimesearchandrescuezone
Responsible Libya
Italian Defense Minister Elisabetta Trenta told Sky24 that "the Libyan coastguard is now baduming this responsibility and has been trained by our Coast Guard and have the capacity to fulfill their duty ".
ships, and the EU has injected significant sums of money into the formation of the country 's coast guard, providing additional funding of 280 million euros (325 million euros). dollars) in the coming years.
Italy's far-right Minister of the Interior, Matteo Salvini (left), traveled to Libya in June
Italian media reported that the Italian Navy's management advised vessels up to 76 miles off Liby Sa coast to contact the coast guard of the North African state to obtain information. Observers suspect Italy hoping that the Libyan Coast Guard will return migrants rescued to Africa and thus prevent them from reaching Europe. "Andrej Hunko, a member of the German Left Party, severely criticizes this approach, arguing that the EU violates international law by allowing the return of asylum seekers to Libya.
The Legal Situation
The IMO stresses that states are obliged to save shipwrecked people, but that does not sig does not state that the Libyan Coast Guard can prevent private rescue vessels from entering its territorial waters.
IMO spokeswoman Natasha Brown said the IOM (International Organization for Migration) conventions do not include the right to control movements ships, especially if the goal is current maritime rescue missions. "Brown notes that the IOM rules simply state that neighboring states must cooperate and share responsibility."
But a legal report issued last year by the research division of the German parliament, the Bundestag , said that according to the Law of the Sea
Italy had long been coordinating the rescue efforts of its naval headquarters in the country Rome
Libya is not up to par?
Last year, the Libyan Coast Guard took an authoritarian approach against activists who wanted to take Shipwrecked migrants aboard their own ships Until recently, the country had only four ships based around Tripoli in western Libya, and according to the British newspaper The Times only half of them The Coast Guard members reportedly told the newspaper that they were out of their reach and that they lacked lifejackets to save all the castaways, conditions recalled by Captain Claus-Peter Reisch. of the private rescue ship Lifeline currently on trial in Malta. According to Reisch, the Libyan coastguards are terribly frowned upon
Read more : Libya: building confidence in democracy
One can expect such shortcomings, given that "Libya is a failed state Nicole Hirt, of the German Institute of African Affairs of GIGA, told the EPD news agency." The Coast Guard is led by various warlords who qualify simply from Coast Guard to get European money. "
Hirt said that in fact, these individuals are actively involved in smuggling people." They save refugees to sell them later.
Increasing number of deaths
For years, the EU and the Italian government have made efforts to strengthen the Libyan coastguard and prevent traffickers.
Tags Breakings DW Italy Libya migrants News perspectives rescue takes world wrecked