Friday September 29, 2023, 6:51 p.m.
Last updated: approximately 2 days ago
The countries that participated in the Med9 summit organized on Friday in Malta agreed to call on all other co-legislators “to intensify negotiations on the Pact on Migration and Asylum in order to reach an agreement on all files before the end of the current legislature”. “.
“This agreement must provide the necessary guarantees that the needs of countries on the front line will be adequately met,” they said.
Nations represented at the one-day summit included Malta, France, Greece, Italy, Croatia, Cyprus, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain. Slovenia and Croatia, which have coastlines on the Adriatic Sea, were added to the “Med Group” in 2021. Two senior EU officials – European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel – were invited to the closed meeting. -door meeting. Leaders of the 27 EU countries are holding an informal meeting of the European Council scheduled for next week in Granada, Spain.
The statement also saw countries “recall the need for a significant increase in EU efforts on the external dimension front with a renewed approach to effectively reduce primary movements and prevent departures, improve the rate of return of rejected asylum seekers and other third-country nationals who have no legal right to remain in the Union, address the root causes of irregular migration while respecting the protection of fundamental rights and international obligations. “
Speaking on migration in a press release at the end of the summit, Prime Minister Robert Abela said “the return rate of rejected asylum seekers must be improved. It is vital that smuggling networks are dismantled. “
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said she was satisfied with the “convergence” of points of view during the summit, given the recent differences on the migration issue with France and Germany. She added that she hoped the Tunisia deal would soon materialize, with the first tranche of EU funding expected to arrive next week. “The summit reiterates that the way forward (…) is the fight against illegal immigration, the total fight against traffickers and support for the cause of the migratory phenomenon,” Meloni declared at the end of the summit.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis spoke of the need to be more efficient in “ensuring that unseaworthy boats do not leave the coasts of neighboring countries and do not put people at risk of losing their lives in this which is a very perilous journey. work more with transit countries and we are trying to do that with Turkey. We must work on repatriations and ensure that people who do not qualify for asylum are returned to their country of origin. And we need to focus on legal pathways for migration. If we want to be more vigilant about protecting our borders, the counterbalance must be to provide opportunities for people who can come to the EU and help us support our economic growth, to do so safely and on our own terms.”
The heads of government, in their joint statement, also condemned “Russia’s ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine and reaffirmed our determination to continue to support the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the ‘Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders’. They called on Russia to cease its military activities “and to immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw from all Ukrainian territory.”
By ending the Black Sea Grains Initiative, Russia has further worsened the global food security crisis, according to the states’ statement. “In this context, MED9 said it would continue to support the EU’s engagement with affected partner countries, “notably through EU solidarity pathways which remain instrumental in strengthening global food security.”
“These are major concerns that warrant ever closer cooperation between us, increased vigilance and dialogue with our partners in the South, including those in sub-Saharan Africa. It is up to us to adopt a stronger paradigm for Euro-Africa cooperation on peace and security issues so that we can ensure that we respond effectively to the needs of our partners. Adopting a broader approach, encompassing the entire African continent, will also contribute to this effort “We welcome the fact that the African Union has become a permanent member body of the G20,” the statement said.
The leaders of the nine countries also welcomed the renewed attention at EU level to strengthening the EU’s relations with our partners in the Southern Neighborhood, through the progressive implementation and updating of the New Agenda for the Mediterranean . This momentum must be maintained in order to restore the region to its rightful place on the EU agenda. In this context, the European Council’s call for the strengthening and development of strategic partnerships between the EU and its Southern Neighborhood partners must be realised, they said.
MED9 also addressed the issue of climate change.
Referring to the “severe natural disasters and extreme weather events” that have hit the Mediterranean region in recent months, the vast majority of which are the result of climate change, the nine states declared that it was “necessary to analyze the impact of climate change”. change in areas crucial to our way of life and quality of life, including healthcare, agriculture, food security, energy, water resources and tourism.
“The protection of our natural resources, including the management of agricultural land, water resources and the protection and conservation of marine and coastal ecosystems, forests and the rich biodiversity of our region, must remain a priority,” says the statement.
“We believe that one of our main objectives should remain our direct contribution to the EU’s collective climate neutrality goals to be achieved by 2050 – a gradual but sustainable transition to a carbon neutral economy that combines the promotion of energy renewables and green energy, with a stronger focus on energy efficiency and the security of a decarbonized energy supply,” the statement added.
Prime Minister Robert Abela, regarding the natural disasters, also said that MED9 conveys its deepest condolences to the people of Libya and Morocco. “As good neighbors, we will continue to offer our support to their recovery and reconstruction efforts. But also, in our own countries, climate change has wreaked havoc. There could be no stronger reminder than We must not relent in efforts to tackle both the causes and effects of climate change. We must re-examine how we adapt to climate change and how the Union approaches civil protection and crisis management Of course, no nation is immune to climate change or natural disasters. But it is clear that southern European countries are particularly vulnerable. And it is also clear that current policies and budget of the Union are simply insufficient to cope with a period of such natural disruption.
Heads of government also committed in the declaration to use the European Year of Skills to develop ambitious and innovative upskilling and lifelong learning policies that result in improved wages and working conditions. “Our region must push the EU to strengthen its social dimension, to empower and protect citizens, to reduce inequalities through equal opportunities and access to the labor market, fair working conditions as well as ‘to social protection and inclusion, in constant dialogue with partners.’
The declaration then speaks of a “firm commitment to strengthening the European project and to completing the process of European integration. We will maintain the momentum gained by enlargement over the past year and intensify our support to our partners in their path to membership. based on a fair and merit-based process, measured against compliance with necessary criteria, while taking into consideration our own level of preparedness. In this context, we reaffirm our total and unequivocal commitment to the prospect of Western countries joining the European Union. Balkans, Moldova and Ukraine. »
“We reaffirm that EU enlargement must be part of our common future, in the interests of greater regional peace, security and prosperity. We therefore recognize the need to consider how which the EU can prepare for the future, to remain capable of acting strongly and sovereignly.
The full statement can be viewed here