Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt - Photo: Pawel Flato
In a press conference with the Maltese PM, Swedish PM Fredrik Reinfeldt said
‘I know that Malta is pushing for more burden sharing to solve its immigration problems and that the Commission is also pressing on this point but, as you know, there are different views among member states on this. We will do our part and push a bit more. We do recognise that burden sharing can be a way forward. However, we also need to ensure that migrants are also welcomed in Europe. So, although burden sharing is important, there are difficulties and it is easier said than done.’
Maltese PM Lawrence Gonzi said that
‘Malta wants concrete help and we recognise the suggestions put forward by the European Commission and endorsed last week by EU leaders that the new Stockholm programme in the field of justice and home affairs will also include concrete measures on burden sharing among member states.’
According to the Times of Malta, “[i]n EU circles, Sweden is considered to be among the most sceptical member states when it comes to asylum and migration policy and, lately, was among the leading group of Nordic member states trying to water down the Commission’s initiatives to help Malta and other southern EU members facing major influxes of immigrants from sub-Saharan Africa.”
Click here for Times of Malta article.
Click here for Malta Independent article.
Four new patrol boats for the Armed Forces of Malta are scheduled to be delivered in six months. The boats cost €9.6 million. 75% of the cost is coming from the EU External Borders Fund.
ANSA – PALERMO, 19 GIU – Nuovo respingimento nel Canale di Sicilia: un barcone con 76 migranti, e’ stato intercettato da una motovedetta della Guardia Costiera.Il barcone era stato segnalato ieri a 29 miglia a Sud di Lampedusa, in acque di competenza maltese per quanto riguarda le operazioni di ricerca e soccorso. Secondo fonti militari maltesi, gli extracomunitari, tra cui donne e bambini, sarebbero stati consegnati a una motovedetta libica e riportati a Tripoli.
To mark World Refugee Day, 20 June, the Maltese National Statistics Office released statistics for 2008 regarding the numbers of boats and migrants reaching shore and related asylum application data.
MIGRANTS AT SEA 