Albanian Constitutional Court validates migration agreement with Italy
The Albanian Constitutional Court has given the green light to the agreement with Italy for the reception of migrants rescued in the Mediterranean by Italian maritime authorities. According to a statement from the Court, this agreement does not harm the territorial integrity of Albania and does not violate the Albanian constitution. The project should be completed by next summer.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama give a joint press conference as they signed an agreement on migration at Palazzo Chigi in Rome, November 6, 2023. © Tiziana FABI / AFP
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With our correspondent in Rome,
Anne Le Nir
Signed between
Giorgia Meloni
and her Albanian counterpart
Edi Rama
in November 2023, the agreement provides for the creation of two centers for the identification and retention of non-vulnerable migrants rescued by Italian ships in the Mediterranean.
The identification center will be installed in Shengjin Port while the retention structure will be built in Gjader. The total number of migrants relocated to Albania, while waiting to know whether they will be eligible for asylum in Italy or will have to be repatriated, will be around 3,000 per month.
The expenses for the construction of the infrastructures, and for their operation, will be entirely borne by Italy. This project, which scandalizes humanitarian NGOs as well as the opposition to the Meloni government, was approved by the Chamber of Deputies on January 24. It will soon be put to a vote in the Senate where the right-wing and far-right coalition has a large majority. The cost per relocated migrant is estimated at 22,000 euros per year. That is 30% more than what the State currently spends in Italy.
Read also: Italy will relocate to Albania the reception of migrants rescued at sea
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