European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU could “learn lessons” from Italy’s controversial policy on handling offshore migrants in Albania ahead of an EU summit focused on migration.
She made the comments in a letter to member states ahead of meetings in Brussels on Thursday and Friday, where she said the European Commission would put forward a new legislative proposal to increase deportations of migrants.
Von der Leyen, who has just begun her second five-year term as European Commission president, appears to be dealing with pressure on migrants from across Europe.
She said in a letter to member states that the current return rate of irregular migrants from EU countries is only about 20%, which means that the vast majority of people ordered to leave EU member states do not do so.
Many simply stayed put or moved to another country within the EU, she said.
Von der Leyen wrote that member states should all recognize decisions taken by other EU countries to ensure that “migrants who have a return decision taken against them in one country cannot exploit loopholes in the system to avoid returning elsewhere”.
Her comments came as Italy launched a long-awaited plan under which some migrants rescued in the Mediterranean will be sent to Albania for processing.
Earlier this week, 16 men of Bangladeshi and Egyptian origin were transferred from the migrant hotspot of Lampedusa off the coast of Sicily to one of two purpose-built centers on the Albanian coast, where their asylum applications will be reviewed.
The centers, which cost around €650m (£547m) and were due to open last spring but were plagued by lengthy delays, have been paid for by the Italian government and will operate under Italian law.
They will house migrants while Italy reviews their asylum applications. Pregnant women, children and vulnerable groups will be excluded from the scheme.
Political opponents of Italy’s right-wing Prime Minister Giorgio Meloni and some non-governmental organizations have criticized Italy’s deal with Albania.
Left+European party MP Riccardo Magi said Albania’s plan was “cruel, useless and expensive”, while NGO Doctors Without Borders said it “could lead to further harm and violations” human rights”.
However, Meloni, speaking to MPs on Tuesday, said the plan was “a new, brave and unprecedented path” that “perfectly embodies the European spirit”.
The implementation and outcome of the Albania deal will be closely watched by many EU member states, with some trying to counter a surge in support for far-right parties by hardening their rhetoric and immigration policies.
In the past few weeks alone, Germany has reintroduced land border checks, the French government said it would look into tightening immigration legislation, and Poland announced a plan to temporarily suspend asylum rights for people crossing the border.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the controversial move was an attempt to prevent Belarus from “destabilizing Poland” by allowing large numbers of immigrants into Poland.
In France and Germany, horrific murders have prompted calls for tougher action against immigrants. Failed Syrian asylum seeker stabs three to death in Solingenalthough A young student is murdered near Paris by a Moroccan national. In both cases, the killers were people against whom deportation orders had not been carried out.
Last month, 15 member states signed a proposal from Austria and the Netherlands to improve the “efficiency” of the deportation system.
