The Cabinet yesterday upped the stakes in Malta's diplomatic row with Italy when it decided that the government could provide immigrants at sea with assistance to continue on their way towards Italy.
The decision signifies a marked shift in government policy towards migrants making the journey across the Mediterranean.
In a strongly worded statement after a Cabinet meeting, which discussed the most recent case involving the rescue of 66 immigrants off Lampedusa, the government reaffirmed its obligation to help those who found themselves in difficulty.
However, it qualified the meaning of help, insisting this would vary on a case-by-case basis. People who faced danger because their boat was in no shape to travel would have to be taken to the nearest port.
In other cases, immigrants would be granted the necessary assistance "to be able to continue their voyage without danger."
Previously, there was no policy to intervene in this way, especially given that such action would certainly have incurred Italy's displeasure.
Referring to the recent incident, the government accused Italy of reneging on its international obligations when it stopped an AFM patrol boat from disembarking the rescued migrants at Lampedusa.
The Cabinet described Italy's excuse that it did not have the necessary means to rescue the migrants as contradictory because when the AFM patrol boat arrived on the scene a helicopter belonging to the Guardia di Finanza was already hovering above the migrants' dinghy.
The Italian ambassador's claims that Lampedusa was not a "safe" port of call were also deemed "unacceptable".
"Lampedusa is an integral part of the Italian territory to which the island has frequent and regular transport services," the Cabinet said.
The government reiterated that it would not accede to Italy's request to take over parts of Malta's search and rescue area.
The proposal to lend assistance to some boats replicates that made by far-right party Azzjoni Nazzjonali earlier this year and vindicates a similar suggestion made by Nationalist backbencher Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando, who argued that rescued migrants should be put on a boat and sent back to Libya.
However, this tactic is not new. It had already been tried in 2003 when the Armed Forces of Malta had intercepted a boatload of 148 immigrants, who were given enough fuel to reach Italy. The Italian authorities sent them back on arrival by virtue of the bilateral repatriation agreement signed between both countries.
The proposal is also along the lines suggested by the Labour Party. Last month, Labour presented a 20-point plan, which included the suggestion to temporarily suspend Malta's international obligations.
Earlier in the day Labour leader Joseph Muscat criticised the government for its handling of the most recent spat with Italy.
He accused it of falling into the "Italian trap" when it believed their excuse that they had no means to rescue the migrants that were closer to Lampedusa.
"The government should have never accepted such an excuse from Italy. It is simply not credible," Dr Muscat said.
However, he did not say what should have been done and whether the government was right to dispatch a patrol boat to rescue the migrants, who were in a precarious situation.
ksansone@timesofmalta.com