The Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, spent a few days of her summer vacation in Albania, and has been quietly working on rapprochement with this country that aspires to enter the EU for some time. This Monday, her diplomacy bore fruit with an unusual agreement signed with her Albanian counterpart, Edi Rama, by which Italy will build two centers to deport immigrants rescued at sea by the Italian authorities.
“If Italy calls, Albania is there,” said Rama, celebrating the collaboration with Meloni, who has already begun to defend Tirana's entry into the EU because, in his opinion, it behaves as if it were a member state. “Albania is not part of the union but it is a European State, this does not prevent us from seeing the world as Europeans,” insisted the Albanian, whose country maintains strong commercial ties with Rome. Trade with Italy alone represents 20% of Albanian GDP.
The agreement, criticized by the opposition as a flagrant violation of international law, provides for the construction of two centers in Albania under Italian jurisdiction. It is expected that starting in spring they will be able to welcome up to 3,000 people, around 36,000 a year, to manage asylum requests or eventual repatriations.
In the port of Shengjin (in the north of the country) there will be a structure for disembarkation and identification procedures, while about twenty kilometers inland, in Gjader, a permanence and repatriation center will be created. According to Meloni, the Albanian police will cooperate to ensure security and external surveillance. Italy will bear the construction costs, but Rome denies that there will be any other financial compensation for Tirana.
Migrants rescued by Italian ships will only be transferred to these centers, while humanitarian ships will continue to disembark in Italy. The measure also does not include immigrants who arrive independently on Italian shores or minors, pregnant women and other vulnerable people who require immediate assistance.
“It is the first agreement of this type in the EU,” said Meloni, who sees it as a great victory in terms of immigration policy after seeing how during his mandate the arrivals of migrants to Italy have grown exponentially, with 145,000 people since January of this year. year compared to 88,000 in the same period in 2022. "The objectives of the agreement are to counteract human trafficking, prevent irregular flows and welcome only those who really have the right to international protection," he promised.
Until now, the leader of the Brothers of Italy has tried to draw attention to European solidarity, without much result. By outsourcing migration management, Rome imitates an attempt by the British Government to send thousands of asylum seekers to Rwanda, a plan that has been in the crosshairs of justice from the beginning. The Italian right has long thought about creating structures of this type outside the EU, for example in North Africa, but so far no country has accepted.
