A migrant pulling a boy inside a train through a window at the Keleti train station in Budapest, Hungary, yesterday. Photo: Leonhard Foeger/Reuters

Amid rising tensions over the refugee crisis gripping Europe, Malta and Italy yesterday insisted on a European solution to the humanitarian problem. Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, in a joint press conference with Italian counterpart Matteo Renzi, called for a holistic European approach to the crisis.

Dr Muscat was in Florence for yesterday night’s Euro 2016 qualifier between Malta and Italy. The snap news conference was called shortly before noon in the wake of the dramatic developments unfolding in the Hungarian capital, Budapest, where hundreds of migrants supposedly left for a town near the Austrian border aboard a packed train. However, the police later tried to force them to disembark in a town with a detention camp, which triggered a stand-off.

Hungary’s Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, stirred controversy by remarking that the migrant crisis facing Europe was a “German problem” as Germany was the final destination of the refugees fleeing war-torn Middle Eastern countries like Syria.

In sharp contrast, Dr Muscat laid emphasis on the fact that the rapid escalation of the migration crisis had conveyed an even stronger message in favour of a “European solution”. “History will judge us, maybe in 20 years time once the situation stabilises itself. I think we are taking an ultra-sensible position,” Dr Muscat said. The message was reciprocated by Mr Renzi, who insisted Europe had to show its human face.

“At times this is lacking, judging from the declarations of some of our colleagues,” Mr Renzi said. The migrants’ ordeal in Hungary followed two days of chaos, symbolic of a European asylum system brought to breaking point.

“A lot of European leaders were moved by the grim images of the crisis, but very few of them have actually moved,” Mr Renzi said. Images of a drowned three-yearold face down on a Turkish beach, and one of at least 12 who died there the previous day while trying to sail to a Greek island, yesterday appeared in newspapers across the continent, increasing public pressure on politicians to take action.

“There is no alternative but to save the lives of those trying to cross the Mediterranean,” the Italian leader remarked. “Europe cannot lose face, and it is its duty to give a prompt response.”

‘It is Europe’s duty to give a prompt response’

He remarked that European values were not only about rescuing ailing economies but also about human lives, while expressing his gratitude to Malta for its support. “Europe cannot be just about regulations and abstract bureaucratic talks, but Europe must also be present in the holds of the ships… in the eyes of those people who maybe wanted to resettle outside Europe,” he said.

Mr Renzi said next November’s EU-Africa Summit on migration, which Malta would be hosting, was among the major successes achieved by Dr Muscat on this front. “The aim of this meeting will be to draft a long-term strategy,” the Maltese Prime Minister added.

Touching on Malta’s decision to take some migrants under a European resettlement programme, Dr Muscat said this had been done to convey that it truly believed in a unified global approach. While making the case for more European aid to African countries from which thousands of people were fleeing to seek a better life in Europe, he warned that this support had to be reciprocated.

“We expect African countries to collaborate on matters dealing with documentation, transparency and democracy.” Meanwhile, France and Germany yesterday agreed to propose a permanent and mandatory EU system to take in refugees and asylum seekers, especially Syrians.

“We have proposed, with German Chancellor Merkel, a permanent and obligatory mechanism. I believe that today what exists is no longer enough and there are countries... who do not assume their moral obligations, so we will need to go further,” French President Francois Hollande said at a joint news conference with Irish PM Enda Kenny.

Additional reporting by Reuters