Germany, France call for European migration solution
August 18, 2018
Germany's Angela Merkel and France's Emmanuel Macron stressed the need for a "coordinated European solution" to migrant arrivals from the Mediterranean. They also voiced concern for the humanitarian situation in Syria.
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron spoke via telephone about the issue of migrants rescued in the Mediterranean Sea, the Elysee Palace said on Friday.
The conversation comes after the NGO ship Aquarius was denied entry by multiple coastal European states. It instead docked in Malta after five EU members — France, Germany Spain, Portugal and Luxembourg — offered to take the 141 refugees on board who were rescued off the coast of Libya.
Both Merkel and Macron called for a "coordinated European solution" in regards to the intake of rescue ships and an approach to smugglers, the Elysee Palace said.
Italy has refused to allow private ships docking rights at its ports, saying that the rescue ships need to dock in Libya or other EU member states. In June, the country turned away the Aquarius, which forced the rescue ship, operated by SOS Mediterranee and Doctors without Borders (MSF), to travel 1,500 kilometers (810 nautical miles) before docking in Spain.
Italy has accused private rescue ships of encouraging smugglers to pack migrants into shoddy boats, knowing that the ships will rescue them. Prosecutors in Sicily are currently investigating more than 20 rescue workers for assisting with illegal immigration, including 10 crew members of the impounded ship Iuventa belonging to German NGO Jugend Rettet.
NGO ship rescues Europe-bound migrants in Mediterranean
The search-and-rescue ship Aquarius saved nearly 300 people in the Mediterranean Sea over Easter. European maritime authorities prevented the NGO workers from rescuing 80-90 men during one operation.
Image: DW/F. Warwick
First on site
At around 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 31, the search-and-rescue vessel Aquarius, along with the Libyan coast guard, was alerted by the Italian Rescue Maritime Coordination Center (IMRCC) that a rubber boat was in distress in international waters. Aquarius is manned by rescue workers from SOS Mediteranee, medics from Doctors Without Borders (MSF) and a nautical and technical crew.
Image: DW/F. Warwick
People in distress
Aquarius made first contact with the rubber boat in international waters at around 11:00 a.m. Soon after, the SOS head coordinator was informed by IMRCC that the Libyan coastguard would take charge of the rescue operation. As people in the overcrowded rubber boat, visibly in distress, waved frantically, Aquarius was instructed to standby and wait for further instructions.
Image: DW/F. Warwick
Helping hand
Two hours later, and with no Libyan coastguard in sight, the Aquarius was able to convince the IMRCC and the Libyans to allow them to rescue children, women and families. They evacuated 39 vulnerable people. They had to leave the remaining 80-90 men on the rubber boat to the Libyan coastguard. The Aquarius has the capacity to carry 500 rescued people.
Image: DW/F. Warwick
All in it together
MSF nurse Sylvie was on board the Aquarius' fast-speed rescue boat, whose personnel identified medical and vulnerable cases later evacuated to the NGO ship. Over the course of three missions, the staff saved 292 people from more than 20 countries, the majority from sub-Saharan Africa. Besides showing signs of dehydration, exhaustion and weakness, some also displayed signs of physical abuse.
Image: DW/F. Warwick
Having fun
As parents rested on the ship's deck, MSF logistician Francois took a moment to interact with the newly arrived children. Those rescued got a chance to bond with the ship's crew as well as to express themselves in safe and secure surroundings.
Image: DW/F. Warwick
Doctor's orders
Dr. Dan from California gave each new arrival a check-up to see whether anyone was in need of urgent medical care. Once on land, those rescued are examined by local medical staff in Italy.
Image: DW/F. Warwick
Holding tight in rough weather
As the vessel pitched and rolled in strong winds, SOS Mediteranee team member Theo cuddled a child rescued the day before. "As a seaman it's your duty to save anybody in distress," he said. "We all shed tears yesterday. I had a baby and children in my arms. We helped some women. What's the most important is to get all these out people out of the water, to save them and for them to survive."
Image: DW/F. Warwick
Thanking the Lord
As the Aquarius approached the Sicilian city of Messina, the designated Italian port of safety, many of the rescued women began singing French and English gospel songs praising the Lord and thanking him for safe passage across the Mediterranean Sea.
Image: DW/F. Warwick
On terra firma
Francois personally helped all 292 men, women and children disembark. "Emotionally it was really hard, because once the last guy stepped out on shore, it was over. I could just call everyone and say disembarkation successfully finished, and then I felt empty."
Image: DW/F. Warwick
Thank-you kiss
These lucky people made it to Europe. According to international NGOs figures, between 750,000 and 900,000 immigrants and asylum-seekers remain trapped in Libya, whose migrant detention centers the UN has called inhumane. Many see merely one way out: to attempt to cross one of the world's most deadly seas in rubber dinghies that can only be considered floating death traps.
Image: DW/F. Warwick
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Concern over Idlib
Merkel and Macron also discussed Ukraine and the war in Syria in their telephone conversation, specifically the growing humanitarian crisis in the rebel-controlled Idlib province in Syria.
Idlib, located in northern Syria, is shaping up to be the next battleground in the country's seven-year civil war as government forces have stepped up their bombardment of rebel positions in recent days.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is keen on retaking control of the northern province, the biggest area still under rebel control. Last week, government helicopters dropped paper fliers over towns in Idlib demanding people to surrender.
The two European leaders agreed the "humanitarian risks" in the region are "very high" and said there is a need for an "inclusive political process to allow lasting peace in the region," the French government said.
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Merkel lowers expectations of Putin meeting
In addition to Syria, Merkel and Macron also conversed about Ukraine ahead of the German chancellor's meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at Meseberg Palace outside Berlin on Saturday.
Germany and France want UN troops deployed in all areas controlled by Russian-backed separatists, including along the Russia-Ukraine border. Russia is opposed to the idea.
Speaking on Friday, Merkel warned against expectations that her meeting with Putin will produce a breakthrough, saying the meeting is a product of necessity rather than choice.
"It's a working meeting from which no specific results are expected. But the number of problems that occupy us — from Ukraine and Syria to the issue of economic cooperation — is so big that it is justified to be in a permanent dialogue," said Merkel, who last met with Putin in Sochi in May.
Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimean peninsula in 2014, increasing tensions between the two countries and sparking a conflict between separatists and Ukrainian forces.