TALLIN: EU interior ministers on Thursday pledged to back an urgent European Commission plan to help crisis-hit Italy, which has been overwhelmed by a wave of migrants arriving by sea from North Africa. At the end of June, Italy threatened to stop vessels from other countries disembarking rescued migrants at its ports. The influx has exacerbated tensions with neighbouring Austria, which this week threatened to send troops to its border with Italy to stop migrants entering. Ministers also hailed a proposed “code of conduct” to regulate non-governmental organisations (NGOs) on rescue missions patrolling off the coast of Libya. The talks grouped foreign ministers from Libya, Niger, Tunisia, Egypt, Chad, Ethiopia and Sudan with their counterparts from Germany, Austria, Spain, France, The Netherlands, Malta and Estonia.

Source: Manila Times July 07, 2017 03:22 UTC