EU soldiers may board, search and seize vessels on the high seas used for human smuggling even without a UN mandate, The Sunday Times of Malta has learnt.

The proposal, which relies on existing international laws, is included in a draft plan to be discussed by EU foreign and defence ministers tomorrow. 

The operation called EUNAVFOR Med is expected to be headquartered in Rome. EU ministers will be told that according to existing legislation States may intercept vessels suspected of smuggling migrants where the flag State grants authorisation to board and search, or where the vessel is not flagged.

Soldiers will be able to act on the high seas on the strength of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and the Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants.

But any hope of entering Libyan territorial and internal waters to arrest people smugglers will depend on a UN mandate granted by the Security Council or consent from the Libyan government. 

Ministers will be asked to give the military operation a mandate – subject to a UN resolution – to “take all necessary measures” against a vessel involved in human smuggling “in the territory of the coastal State”. These measures include the disposal of the vessel or rendering it inoperable. 

Ms Mogherini last week ruled out putting soldiers on the ground in Libya. However, the Mediterranean mission may mimic the anti-piracy operation off Somalia, which was last year granted authorisation to use helicopters to target pirates on shore. 

The Commission’s action plan is distinct from the military operation to target smugglers being pushed by Ms Mogherini.