France reaffirms commitment to help Malta with relocation of refugees

French Immigration Minister Eric Besson has reaffirmed his country’s commitment to help Malta with the relocation of refugees granted international protection in Malta.

Mr Besson told Home Affairs Minister Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici during a meeting in Paris that he would intervene in favour of Malta whenever he met his other European counterparts, saying that the relocation of refugees from Malta would increase the efficiency of the Dublin agreements that stipulate that the country that was the first port of entry was competent for treating the case of asylum seekers.

France is the only EU country so far that has relocated people who have been granted refugee status in Malta. It took 94 migrants last July under the European Commission’s Pilot Project for Malta.

Mr Besson added that France, which according to statistics revealed by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees received the highest number of asylum applications in the world, would promote the idea of European solidarity in favour of Malta.

Both Mr Besson and Dr Mifsud Bonnici reiterated their support for a strong and united European policy in the field of immigration and asylum.

They also called upon the EU to take urgent steps to reinforce the fight against illegal immigration and towards uniform asylum policies with a view toward the upcoming meeting of EU Heads of State on October 29 and 30.

At a time when immigrant smuggling rings were exerting great pressure on the external borders of the EU, especially in the Mediterranean, the two ministers agreed upon the importance of FRONTEX to supervise and control these borders.

They decided to combine their efforts in order to reinforce the action of FRONTEX especially by promoting maritime engagement rules oriented towards interception of boats and the return of such boats, in compliance with international laws and engagements related to asylum.

Mr Besson and Dr Mifsud Bonnici also underlined the urgency to build an asylum-friendly Europe, in compliance with the respect of the rights of persecuted people and in conformity with EU’s international obligations and values. Finally, they both agreed that an asylum-friendly Europe would also fight against the misuse of asylum procedures by people-smuggling rings.