Italy sends first refugees to Albania: foreign media on what this manoeuvre means for Europe

In today’s world, the issue of migration and displacement of people is at the centre of political, social and economic debates.

Each country is looking for its own solutions to this global problem, which affects not only security and sovereignty, but also humanitarian rights. One of the most discussed examples is Italy, which decided to send its first migrants to neighbouring Albania.

This step was taken as part of an agreement signed between Rome and Tirana, and aims to speed up the processing of asylum applications by sending migrants to reception camps in Albania.

This decision has caused a significant outcry in Europe and opens a new chapter in relations between countries in terms of managing migration flows. However, it also raises serious questions about humanitarian policy, ethics and the responsibility of European governments in this process.

Foreign media are discussing what this manoeuvre means for Europe.

La Vanguardia – Spain.‘The pattern is breaking all over Europe,’ notes Barcelona’s La Vanguardia:

“The European Commission is planning to tighten regulations on readmission (deportations) and calls the model now agreed between Italy and Albania an “innovative solution”. …Ursula von der Leyen advocates for agreements with ‘safe third countries’, such as those with Tunisia and Egypt, and looks towards Libya, Algeria and Mauritania. The agreement with Turkey has been in place since 2016. …

The trend towards tougher measures is also evident in the decisions taken by an increasing number of countries, ranging from border controls in France and Germany to the temporary suspension of asylum legislation in Finland and Poland. The rejection of migration as such is evident across Europe.”

Süddeutsche Zeitung – Germany. ‘The Italian model should not be an example to follow,’ warns the Munich-based Süddeutsche Zeitung:

“Looking at the footage from the main camp in the village of Gyader, where people are forced to languish under lock and key for months until their fate is decided, you can only feel horror. Europe has somehow become accustomed to refugee dormitories where people have to live for long periods of time without any clear prospects, but this camp is beyond that. Surrounded on all sides, it looks like a high-security prison for criminals who have committed serious crimes. The building is brand new, freshly painted, but inhospitable, cold and heartless.

The words of the Italian Minister of the Interior, who said that, look, there is no barbed wire around, sound like a mockery. Albania is not a solution to the problem. It is a clear proof of European helplessness and inhumanity’.

La Repubblica – Italy. La Repubblica accuses Rome of a colonial approach to Albania:

“Ever since the days of Foreign Minister Galeazzo Ciano [in Mussolini’s government], the “land of the eagles” has exerted an irresistible influence on the Italian right, which now boasts that it has succeeded in re-Italising a small piece of land across the Adriatic Sea to some extent. This return to the old colonialism is, of course, at the expense of Italian taxpayers. …

The opposition has voiced the amount of one billion euros, while other sources report 600-650 million allocated under this agreement for a period of ten years. If [Finance Minister] Giorgetti is looking for advice on how to cut unnecessary spending, he should have his binoculars pointed in the direction of Tirana.”

El País – Spain. Madrid’s El País is outraged to the limit:

“For several months now, you can talk all kinds of nonsense about migrants, but no one bats an eyelid. Some even say that Maloney’s methods work and that it would be desirable to apply them in Spain. Are you serious? The only thing Italy has done is to prevent the rescue of shipwrecked migrants – it closed its ports to direct the flows towards the Canary Islands – and set up camps in neighbouring Albania.

Neighbouring countries that are even more unprincipled about human rights than we are are making a business out of becoming a cold and cruel waiting room… And the result of our indifference will be an even more cruel and heartless society.”