Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
The European Commission and Tunisia have expressed their desire to establish a strengthened operational partnership in the area of migration, combating human trafficking and promoting legal migration.
According to a statement issued by the Commission's headquarters in Brussels on Friday
This comes after Tunisian Foreign Minister Nabil Ammar demanded the European Union to show solidarity with his country in fighting illegal immigration. This came after talks with the European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, who visited Tunisia on Thursday.
In Tunisia, according to media reports in Brussels, migrants from sub-Saharan Africa regularly try to leave for Italy. At some points, the distance between the North African country and the Italian island of Lampedusa is less than 150 kilometers.
And according to what the Belgian news agency reported on Friday, during the first three months of this year, the Tunisian security forces rescued or intercepted more than 14,000 migrants, more than five times more than in the same period in 2022. In particular, the president's speech appears to be The Tunisian who described illegal immigration as a threat to his country to increase the number of departures.
During his meeting with the European official, Ammar stressed "the importance of EU support for social and economic reforms in Tunisia (...) to better manage common challenges, including migration." In addition, the Tunisian minister noted "the need to address migration issues with a global approach."
According to the Belgian news agency
And in late March, Tunisia called on the European Union to show "greater understanding" after many European leaders expressed concern about the crisis in the country and its risks to Europe.
According to the European Commission in Brussels, the Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, visited Tunisia yesterday. The visit reinforces the strategic partnership with the North African country, as part of its "Team Europe" approach. During her visit, she met with Interior Minister Kamal El-Feki. And Malik Azza, Minister of Social Affairs. Nabil Ammar, Minister of Foreign Affairs.
The discussions centered on the common fight against migrant smuggling in order to contribute to the prevention of irregular migration, return and reintegration, and to ensure the protection of the most vulnerable migrants, as well as legal migration.
The visit is part of a broader political engagement of the European Union and its Member States with Tunisia and the strategic partnership between the European Union and Tunisia.