"Italy, faced with an influx of migrants since January (145,000 compared with 88,000 in 2022 over the same period), has appealed to its European partners for solidarity, with little result so far." TF1 info.
As a result, the Italian government has realized that it has reached the limits of its reception capacity. Its intention is to equip each region with a holding center for irregular migrants awaiting deportation. This project does not please all governments, it raises concerns, and it is seen as an idea of refoulement, which is a prohibited practice under international and European law. Even so, according to the European Commissioner for Home Affairs, outsourcing the processing of asylum applications does not infringe EU law.
The European Union is very concerned about the agreement signed between the two countries, especially Albania, which is not a member of the EU. Indeed, according to Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, "If the same agreement had been made with an EU country, nobody would be talking about it", France24.
As a result, two centers are to be built in Albania, as stipulated in the signed agreement, to be placed under Italian jurisdiction and "operational by spring 2024". The UN thus calls for respect for international law, just as the modalities for transferring asylum seekers and refugees must respect international law relating to international refugee law.
No financial compensation has been stipulated in the agreement, but Italy intends to provide Albania with support, above all diplomatic. "It is a friendly country and, although it is not yet part of the EU, it behaves as if it were a member state," declared Giorgia Meloni, welcoming the fact that "Italy has always been among the countries supporting enlargement to the Western Balkans," les Echos.
To everyone's surprise, this agreement was quickly concluded on the Albanian side, without any parliamentary discussion, political consensus or request for public opinion. This is why the Albanian population is very angry with its prime minister, who does not accept this agreement due to their country's rather poor economy. The Albanian Constitutional Court has suspended the ratification of the controversial agreement between Italy and Albania on the management of irregular immigration, because the democratic party claims that the Rome agreement between Giorgia Meloni and Edi Rama violates national and constitutional law, as well as a large number of international agreements and treaties.
It is believed that this agreement is not similar to the one signed in 2022 between the UK and Rwanda, which was criticized by European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson.
SOURCES :
EURACTIVE.FR : https://www.euractiv.fr/section/immigration/news/lalbanie-suspend-son-accord-migratoire-avec-litalie/
EURACTIVE.FR : https://www.euractiv.fr/section/international/news/accord-migratoire-italie-albanie-lonu-appelle-au-respect-du-droit-international/
LES ECHOS.FR : https://www.lesechos.fr/monde/europe/accord-surprise-entre-litalie-et-lalbanie-sur-laccueil-des-migrants-2027291
L'EXPRESS.FR : https://www.lexpress.fr/monde/immigration-entre-lalbanie-et-litalie-un-accord-qui-derange-lue-S473X4AASBCPHD22IDWTMEK3KM/
INFORMATION TV 5 MONDE. COM : https://information.tv5monde.com/international/accord-migratoire-italie-albanie-la-commission-europeenne-demande-des-precisions-rome
LE FIGARO.FR : https://www.lefigaro.fr/flash-actu/l-albanie-n-accueillera-pas-plus-de-3000-migrants-a-la-fois-dans-le-cadre-de-son-accord-avec-l-italie-20231108