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Xavier Bertrand warns French PM the risk was 'very real'

CALAIS could again descend into violence this summer as migrants try to get into Britain, a French official has warned.

Xavier Bertrand, the president of Hauts-de-France region, wrote to the new Prime Minster of France warning that something must be done to combat people trying to get into the UK.

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In a letter to Edouard Philippe, seen by the Daily Express, Mr Bertrand said: The situation has become worrisome again. I am regularly alerted by road hauliers who are seeing an upsurge of degradation on their trucks.

Every day residents, elected officials and business leaders express their concerns about the return of migrants to Calais.

The risk is very real the security forces are not able to prevent migrants present near Calais to prepare their attempts to intrude in the port or tunnel in order to reach the UK.

The letter comes after the UKs shipping chief warned Emmanuel Macron that his plan to move Britains border from Calais would cause chaos for travellers in Dover.

The new French President wants to scrapthe current border deal but yesterday the PM insisted it was not up for negotiation.

Theresa May said she would be sitting down and talking to Monsieur Macron about how the so-called Le Touquet system worked and would stress that it works for the benefit of both the UK and France.

Her comments sparked fears it could be scrapped but her aides insisted she would make clear that the border deal is not up for discussion.

The treaty, which was signed in 2003, lets British officials carry out checks on the French side of the channel.

PA:Press Association

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Today the CEO of the UK Chamber of Shipping warned that cancelling the treatywould mean extra checks at BOTH sides of the Channel which would be a nightmare for travellers.

Guy Platten told The Sun Online thatthis would lead to chaos at Dover and Calais with lengthy queues for travellers and lorries carrying cargo.

He said: Anything which requires additional checking will cause a blockage. If you are stopping every car, stopping it all go in, you will cause delays.

All you will do is cause two lots of checks to be carried out, and massive delays.I cant see any upside.

He warned against reports today that said in the event the agreement is scrapped, ferry companies would be made responsible for stopping migrants from crossing into Britain, and expressed his concerns around the legality of such a move.

Mr Platten, who represents 170 members of the shipping industry, said: If ferry operators were required to check every lorry for illegal immigrants before embarkation, then voyage delays will see colossal queues of cars and lorries.

The move would affect Calais and Dunkirk just as much as Dover, he stressed.

The news comes after just a month ago Mr Platten reassured Brits that they would be unlikely to face further checks after Britain quits the EU.

AP:Associated Press

The new French President said back in March that France can no longer be Britains coast guard and he wanted to put the agreement back on the table.

Migrants trying to get into the UK illegally are turned back at Calais which sparked camps being set up there as Europes immigration issues spiralled over the past few years.

There are serious concerns that scrapping the agreement would entice more to try and make the dangerous crossing if they thought they may be able to reach our shores.

It would be a complete mess, Mr Platten argued. It seems to be that [for Macron] its a very nice election slogan, but its impractical.

Its not going to achieve anything but increased delays. Nice soundbite, but Im not sure it will stand the test of time.

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There are also fears that Macrons landslide win in France will affect our Brexit negotiations.

The 39-year-old previously appeared to row back on comments that he wanted a hard Brexit.

But thenewly elected French leader will be tough in the talks about to start, they warned.

And hewill soon begin his plan to attract London bankers to Paris after Brexit.

Analysts speculated France could try to nick up to 20,000 workers from Britain.v

The PM previously slammed Macron when he called for an exodus of bankers from the UK to Paris from the doorstep of No10 earlier this year.

Original post:
Calais migrant crisis 'could return this summer' warns French ... - The Sun

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You cant any longer speak about immigration but about an invasion organised, funded and planned by Brussels with the complicity of Rome, Matteo Salvini said Monday, according to ANSA.

On Twitter, Mr. Salvini also suggested Europe is funding shipwrecks, mafia and Islamic terrorism and called for border checks to be moved to North Africa.

Several NGOs and charities, some EU-funded, are now under investigation for allegedly exploiting migrants and colluding with people smugglers and the mafia. Some groups have been accusedof arranging to meet migrant boats just a few miles off the African coast and taking bribes from criminals.

Italian prosecutors are already investigating one group and Trapani prosecutor Ambrogio Cartosio in May claimed that some NGOs were perhaps financed by traffickers and were potentially seeking to destabilise the Italian economy.

Other NGOs, such as the EU-backed S.O.S. Mediterranee, are not accused of criminality but have been criticised for running a taxi services from near the African coast and effectively encouraging illegal crossings.

The Aquarius rescue Ship run by NGO S.O.S. Mediterranee and Medecins Sans Frontieres arrives in the port of Salerno with 1004 migrants including 240 children rescued in the Mediterranean sea, on May 26 2017. (CARLO HERMANN/AFP/Getty)

According to ASNA, Mr. Salvini placed some blame on the Italian government, calling the ruling Democratic Party (PD) an accomplice to this invasion along with the [left-wing] cooperatives and the pseudo-aid associations.

Adding: The calls from Brussels and Strasbourg for respecting the migrant programme are ridiculous.

Im waiting for elections so that Italy can defend its borders again. Give me the interior ministry for three months and youll see what order and efficiency I bring back from north to south all over Italy.

I wont wait for Strasbourg, nor Brussels or Merkel.

In the first three months of 2017, Italy experienced a 30 per cent jump in immigration compared with the same period of 2016, despite the prior years record-breaking figures.

According to official reports, during 2016, only 2.65 per cent of those immigrating into Italy were awarded asylum as refugees, with the vast majority staying on in the country as illegal, undocumented immigrants.

Read more:
Italian Populist Leader Slams EU and NGOs 'Funding and Planning' Migrant Crisis - Breitbart News

File photo of would-be migrants waiting to disembark in Sicily. Photo: Ella Ide/AFP

It is not an experience he's keen to repeat but Carmelo Cuzzolino is resigned to the inevitable as stretched resources mean more merchant ships get caught up in the Mediterranean migrant crisis.

The veteran Italian seaman has just spent two testing days at the helm with more than 1,000 distressed African migrants crowded onto the tug boat he skippers in his role as head of security for a major oil platform in waters off troubled Libya.

"I've been a captain around here for 30 years, I've seen migrants go by... But this, this was a first" the 60-year-old told AFP in a phone interview from the southern Italian island of Sicily.

The Vos Thalassa, his 60-metre (200 foot) vessel, usually spends its time patrolling an oil field about 70 nautical miles off Libya.

On Friday afternoon he spotted a vessel carrying about 40 migrants, who were waving a white flag signalling distress, and when he contacted the Italian Coastguard, they asked him to intervene.

The coastguard said two patrol boats would soon arrive from the island of Lampedusa to recover the migrants.

INTERVIEW: The Italian doctor who has assisted every migrant arriving at Lampedusa

File photo of migrants at the port of Lampedusa. Photo: Alberto Pizzoli/AFP

Instead, those boats rescued other migrants at risk of drowning, and brought them to Cuzzolino's boat before heading off for other rescue operations.

"At half past midnight I had 1,042 people aboard, including about 50 women, 15 children and seven bodies that were already in sealed bags when they brought them to me," he said.

He does not know how they died, but many of the migrants trying to cross the Mediterranean for Europe succumb to hypothermia or dehydration, choke on engine fumes, or are smothered on overcrowded vessels.

Some 3,400 migrants were rescued in the waters off Libya last Friday alone, bringing the total for last week to more than 10,000 people.

Boats filling up fast

Without food or water, the migrants packed on the Vos Thalassa's broad flat deck were on edge, and many became threatening and at times aggressive toward the 14 crew members.

"We barricaded ourselves inside," the captain said, letting only women and children enter to use the toilets.

An Italian coastguard ship, itself loaded with migrants, was able to drop off food and water on Saturday.

File photo of an Italian coastguard ship arriving at Lampedusa. Photo: Maura Seminara/AFP

But Italy's Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre had no more boats available, so the Vos Thalassa had no choice but to head for Sicily itself.

Global leaders, however, were still gathered on the east coast of the island for their G7 summit at Taormina. So Cuzzolino was told to chart a course to Palermo, in the northwest of the island, where he was finally able to unload his passengers on Sunday afternoon.

READ ALSO: Sicilian tourist town in lockdown and aid boats diverted ahead of G7 meet

It was 3:00 am by the time all the migrants were brought off the boat, and the captain and his crew then spent several hours cleaning up.

Italian media reported that police arrested a 39-year-old Moroccan wanted on suspicion of drug trafficking and a 22-year-old Nigerian accused by many on the ship of being a people trafficker.

Many of those onboard said they had crossed the Sahara in the back of refrigerated freight trucks before spending months at camps in Libya, often subjected to violent abuse by their handlers, according to the reports.

"Save lives at sea, bring 150 people to safety, feed and take care of them while waiting for someone to come and get them, this we can do," Cuzzolino said.

"But become a storage vessel for 48 hours, that's putting everyone's lives in danger: the boat, the crew and the migrants," he said.

With milder weather coming, though, encouraging even more migrants to attempt the perilous crossing, the captain knows that when the coastguard, military and NGO boats are full, the authorities will be calling again.

By Fanny Carrier

READ ALSO: 'They got the wrong man': Doubts linger over identity of trafficking suspect Photo: AFP

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'We barricaded ourselves in': Veteran Italian seaman speaks about ... - The Local Italy

Europe

13:29 30.05.2017(updated 13:31 30.05.2017) Get short URL

Earlier this month, the EU parliament and the European Council formalized a long-awaited visa liberalization agreement withUkraine. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko dubbed the decision 'historic', saying that it was Ukraine's final goodbye toits Soviet and Russian 'imperial past'.

The agreement, expected totake effect June 11, will allow Ukrainian citizens withbiometric passports toenter Schengen Area countries (except forthe UK and Ireland), forup to90 days inany 180-day period visa-free. During entry, travelers will be required toproduce a return ticket, proof ofa hotel reservation or an invitation fromrelatives living inthe EU, proof ofmedical insurance and atleast 45 euros foreach day they plan tospend onSchengen Area territory.

AP Photo/ Virginia Mayo

Speaking toRadio Sputnik, Russian political scientist Vladimir Shapovalov explained why Europeans' concerns are justified.

"These fears are well-founded. Notwithstanding the fact that the EU has adopted special regulatory measures aimed atpreventing the influx ofguest workers, it's obvious that many Ukrainian citizens will attempt touse the visa-free regime tostay inEurope," the analyst said.

"Today, there are already hundreds ofthousands ofUkrainians looking forwork inEU countries, and it's obvious that the introduction ofa visa-free regime strongly stimulates the aspirations ofUkrainians looking toget intoEurope."

"And these aspirations are understandable," Shapovalov added. "The Ukrainian economy is facing a grave crisis, exacerbated bypolitical problems and those related tothe [war ineastern Ukraine]. In this situation, working abroad is not just a decision taken ona whim, buta real opportunity toavoid the tremendous social problems and poverty which are typical forUkraine."

Sputnik/ Mikhail Voskresenskiy

Shapovalov suggested that the problem ofpossible illegal labor migration toEU countries is only compounded bythe fact that Kiev is actively seeking todiscourage Ukrainians fromcoming toRussia towork.

An estimated 2.1 million working-age Ukrainians are estimated tobe living and working inRussia. They send home hundreds ofmillions ofdollars-worth ofremittances totheir home country each year. If these migrant workers are squeezed outof Russia, they will need tofind somewhere else togo tofeed families.

"It's no secret that there are millions ofUkrainians working inRussia. If the Ukrainian government creates a regime banning citizens fromworking inRussia, Ukrainians will have nothing left todo butdash fromthe east tothe west, that is, toseek work inPoland, Germany, France and the UK. This is the result ofthe policy being pursued byKiev and, indirectly, the EU," Shapovalov concluded.

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Migrant Crisis Part II: EU Braces for Flood of Illegal Ukrainian Migrant Workers - Sputnik International

TAORMINA, ITALY

Italy chose to host a Group of Seven summit of wealthy nations on a hilltop overlooking the Mediterranean, looking to draw attention to the migrant crisis that has seen hundreds of thousands of people set sail from Africa in search of a better life in Europe.

But world leaders on Saturday said little that will help Italy manage the steady flow of migrants to its shores or enable it to cope with the growing number of new arrivals.

"Even though this summit took place in Sicily, a stone's throw from where so many migrants have died, it produced no concrete steps to protect vulnerable migrants or to address the root causes of displacement and migration," said Roberto Barbieri, the local director of humanitarian group Oxfam.

Food security

Rome had hoped to persuade other major industrialized nations to open more legal channels for migration and to focus attention on food security -- policies which were meant to lower the number of people who set off for Europe.

But the plan was scrapped before the two-day summit even started, with the United States, Britain and Japan unwilling to commit to major new immigration initiatives.

The final communique outlined medium-term commitments to bolster African economies and promote sustainable agriculture, but it focused more on the need for each country to guarantee national security than on how to limit migration.

Countries "reaffirm the sovereign rights of states to control their own borders and set clear limits on net migration levels," said the communique.

'Desperate measures'

Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni said the language was decided "weeks ago" by diplomats from G7 nations -- Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Italy and the United States.

"It wasn't an issue that was the focus of debate, other than recognising the humanitarian importance of taking people in as this region has done," Gentiloni said of Sicily, which has seen hundreds of thousands of migrants arrive since 2014.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said there had been "excellent" discussion on the need boost economic opportunity, in particular during outreach sessions with five African leaders on Saturday, so that people "are not driven to take desperate measures to improve their lot".

Both the United States and Britain opposed the Italian pre-summit initiative to draft a stand-alone G-7 statement entitled "G7 Vision on Human Mobility", an Italian official said.

Open, safe, legal paths

That document included language on the need for open, safe and legal paths for migrants and refugees, according to excerpts seen by Reuters.

Italy has been put under increasing pressure as EU partners have refused to relocate large numbers of asylum seekers, and some have closed their southern borders to keep migrants out of their own countries, effectively sealing them in Italy.

More than 175,000 asylum seekers live in Italian shelters. With sea arrivals at a record pace this year, the issue is hotly debated by politicians facing a general election within a year.

Over the past 10 days, almost 10,000 migrants were rescued off the coast of Libya, where people smugglers cram them onto unsafe boats. Dozens died, including many children.

"We know that the deadliest season is upon us. It starts pretty much now, at least it has for the last few years," Joel Millman, spokesman for the International Organization for Migration, said on Friday. "We expect these coming weeks to be much worse."

Originally posted here:
Italy Still Isolated in Shouldering Migration Crisis After G-7 - Voice of America