S. European leaders rally on migration

Eight leaders of southern European states, including Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi, yesterday sent a letter to the European Commission President and the EU presidency underlining the need to reinforce operational cooperation in the EU's southern maritime borders in a bid to stem illegal migration.

In their letter, the leaders call for a common solution to the challenge of illegal migration, "a problem which concerns the entirety of the union and not only the countries on its external borders".

The Prime Ministers of Malta, Italy, Portugal, Slovenia, Greece and Spain together with the Presidents of France and Cyprus sent the letter to Commission President José Manuel Durão Barroso and the Finnish Prime Minister.

The letter was sent ahead of the Informal European Council, which will be held at the level of heads of state and government in Lahti, Finland on October 20, ahead of the decisions to be taken at the European Council of December.

In the letter, the leaders said it was important to take into account particularly patrolling functions and maritime surveillance, rescue and welcome operations, and the tasks of identification and escort of illegal immigrants.

It appears especially indispensable to improve the organisation of joint operations by reinforcing the operational, administrative and financial capacities of border agency Frontex and to obtain a stronger involvement of all member states, they argue.

In effect, each member state has to make its contribution towards the fight against illegal migration, a problem which concerns the entirety of the union and not only the countries on its external borders.

The leaders put forward a number of concrete proposals for action, which include among others a further strengthening of dialogue with African countries and countries of transit and origin, as well as the reinforcement among EU member states of operational cooperation in the management of the EU's southern border. But, above all, they say, a clear political will is required for the realisation of what has been concluded by mutual agreement and for the development of new initiatives that have become essential owing to the recent floods of migrants at the EU southern borders.

The leaders state that further to these actions, it seems necessary to supply technical and financial assistance to third countries of transit which are actively engaged in the fight against illegal migration by sea for the management of critical situations caused by the massive influx of illegal migrants to their land borders.

It was also important to develop a better understanding of migratory crises, their specifics and their causes, in order to reinforce their prevention by better-targeted and more effective actions.

The leaders underlined the need to accelerate the preparation of the EU-Africa Conference in Tripoli, proposed in the global approach on migration, with the full participation of the African Union.