Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni arrived on a visit to Albania, reported ATA. She was welcomed at the international airport of Tirana by “Mother Teresa” in Rinas by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Infrastructure and Energy of Albania Belinda Baluku, quoted by BTA.
Meloni will visit the migrant accommodation center in the northern Albanian village of Jadar today together with his Albanian counterpart Edi Rama.
On November 6, 2023, in Rome, the Prime Ministers of Albania and Italy, Edi Rama and Giorgia Meloni, signed an agreement that provides for the construction of two centers for migrants – in Jadar and in the nearby northern Albanian coastal city of Shenzhen. At one center, migrants will be screened upon arrival, and at the other, they will be detained while their asylum applications are processed.
This will only apply to migrants rescued at sea by the Italian authorities who will be taken to the centers in Albania, but not to those who have been rescued by NGO ships or have already arrived in Italy.< /p>
The agreement between Italy and Albania is the first example of a non-EU country accepting migrants on behalf of an EU member state, and is part of EU efforts to curb illegal migration, Reuters notes.
According to the agreement, the capacity of the Jader camp will be for 3,000 people, ATA informs.
The agreement stipulates that all costs for the centers will be borne by Italy while it processes the asylum applications.
People who are not approved for asylum will be repatriated to their countries according to the bilateral agreements that the Italian side has with these countries.
The agreement was signed for a five-year period.