(see related)
Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister
Antonio Tajani on Friday mooted resurrecting the EU's Operation
Sophia naval mission due to the sharp increase in the number of
migrants arriving in Italy from North Africa.
The mission, which operated in the Mediterranean between 2015
and 2020, sought both to clamp down in human traffickers and
prevent migrants dying at sea.
"If you don't solve the problem at the source we'll have...
recurring waves of migrants that we are not capable of coping
with," Tajani said on the sidelines of the Risorsa Mare Forum.
"Europe could consider a new Operation Sophia which, in its
various degrees of action, included firmness with irregular
migrants to try to solve the problem with great determination.
"This is an issue which we can discuss with the European Union
in a rapid time frame, not a biblical one".
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA
