European Union leaders are today expected to approve "urgent" measures to help countries like Malta and Italy be in a better situation to face illegal migration.

"Malta has been primarily in mind when these summit conclusions have been drafted. They have already been agreed by EU Foreign Ministers earlier this week and we expect that EU leaders also give their final green light," sources close to the Czech EU Presidency, which will chair the two-day summit meeting in Brussels, said yesterday.

Malta has been pushing for these conclusions for the past weeks following attempts by Italy to have a specific summit on migration failed.

Commission President Josè Manuel Barroso had shot down the idea of having a special summit on the issue and instead promised to present concrete measures to EU leaders during this regular summit.

The measures proposed include an increase in the EU's budget, the start of negotiations with Libya to discuss the possibility of opening reception centres and the setting up of mechanisms through which European countries would take some refugees and asylum seekers from burdened states like Malta and Italy.

The Commission has also proposed the launching of a tailor-made pilot project for Malta whereby Brussels will be financially assisting member states that voluntarily agree to resettle migrants hosted here.

According to the summit's draft conclusions, seen by The Times, all such issues have now been inserted in the final declaration to be discussed and possibly agreed upon by member states.

During the summit, which ends tomorrow, EU leaders will also be discussing other important issues particularly the re-nomination of Mr Barroso for a second term at the helm of the European Commission, legal guarantees to Ireland before holding a second referendum on the Lisbon Treaty and measures to help the creation of jobs in view of the biting recession.