![Manuel Mallia 18072013]()
During an informal Justice and Home Affairs council meeting in Lithuania, Manuel Mallia, Minister for Home Affairs and National Security today met with European Commissioner for Home Affairs Cecilia Malmström, to discuss the developments in Malta with regard to illegal immigration and asylum and the need for solidarity and fair sharing of responsibility among the Member States.
It was agreed that the Commission would provide concrete assistance with regard to the return of failed asylum-seekers to their countries of origin. The Commission will assist the Maltese Government in taking additional measures to repatriate migrants who are illegally present in Malta at the earliest, taking advantage of the assistance that can be provided by the Commission to overcome the practical difficulties that have been encountered so far and to expedite the return of those migrants who have no authorisation to remain in Malta.
The Home Affairs and National Security Ministry will be preparing actions to achieve this aim together with the Commission.
Explaining the impact of the continuing illegal migration flows to Malta and pointing out that Malta and the Maltese people were feeling that they were being left to deal with the situation alone, Minister Mallia emphasized that it was necessary to implement the principle of solidarity and fair responsibility sharing that is already enshrined in the Treaty and that is at the very foundation of the European Union. In this regard, he insisted on the need to render the numbers more manageable in Malta’s context, and called on the Commissioner to extend her assistance.
Commissioner Malmström said she understood the situation and the particular pressure that Malta was facing and stood ready to help Malta in any way she could. To begin with, the Commission will be making emergency funding available to Malta. Commissioner Malmström also gave her assurance that she will continue to push for the relocation of beneficiaries of international protection from Malta, noting that the Annual Relocation Forum that was recently announced will be organized by the Commission after the summer. Minister Mallia and Commissioner Malmström agreed that Member States needed to be further encouraged to show solidarity by relocating beneficiaries of protection from Malta.
Finally, Commissioner Malmström and Minister Mallia agreed that broad cooperation with Libya would need to be pursued on the longer-term, in order to prevent the illegal migration flows.
