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Migrants rescued in the Mediterranean Sea by the Ocean Viking. August 12, 2019. ANNE CHAON / AFP

This may be the end of negotiations on a case by case basis for each rescue operation in the Mediterranean to find out which country will host the survivors of the crossing. Italy calls for a system of automatic distribution of migrants arriving on its shores. The subject was on the menu of a meeting in Malta. The German, French, Italian and Maltese Ministers of the Interior have drawn up a system designed to allow the European voluntary countries to systematically distribute the rescued persons at sea.

The document will first be presented to other member countries, before being publicly disclosed. For the moment, only the four countries that attended the meeting in Valletta have found common ground. The European Commissioner for Immigration, Dimitris Avramopoulos hopes to convince others. " I now call on all Member States to join our work, to put in place a more predictable solidarity mechanism and to participate in solidarity efforts . It is a subject that concerns us all and we must address it collectively. At the same time, we will continue our efforts to support all Member States under pressure on all Mediterranean migration routes ".

" This project remains open to contributions from other countries "

For Italy, which accuses its partners of not having supported it in the face of the migration crisis, the pre-agreement reached in Malta is a good start. Italian Minister of the Interior Luciana Lamorgese: " What is important is that we feel that there is a great cooperation, a willingness to work together. This project remains open to contributions from other countries. It is in our interest for many countries to take part "

The text will be submitted for approval to all European Union countries at a European Council of Interior Ministers in Luxembourg on 8 October.

The pre-agreement reached in Malta today is a first step towards the end of the criminalization of sea rescue in 🇪🇺 & towards the implementation of a rescue force en at sea. Let's remain vigilant on procedures and criteria applied. for the relocation of rescued persons.

Damien CAREME 🌍 (@DamienCAREME) September 23, 2019