Migrants caught in the Mediterranean will now be sent in Albania, BNT reported. The Italian government financed the construction of two migration centers on Albanian territory. They will be guarded by Albanians, but will be under the jurisdiction of Italy.
Schengin is not Schengen - a truth with which many refugees will become familiar. 3,000 migrants can be received per month by the two newly built centers in the Albanian city. An agreement that Rome and Tirana concluded 11 months ago.
"When the project becomes fully operational, the refugee flow could reach 36,000 people a year", said Giorgia Meloni, Prime Minister of Italy 11/08/2023
Shengin is located about 60 kilometers from the capital Tirana. Refugees will be checked at the migration center. The other center is located about 20 kilometers from the first, near a former military airport. Migrants will be accommodated there while their documents are processed. This is expected to take about a month.
The Italian Coast Guard will send only men to Albania - women and children will be accommodated on Italian territory. Italy will accept migrants who are approved for asylum. The others will be deported directly from Albania.
For the construction of the migration centers, Italy granted Albania 670 million euros for a period of 5 years.
"No, Italy is not saying - "take 3,000 migrants and we will let you into the European Union". We are neither rich nor big enough to believe that we are self-sufficient. I am convinced that the conscience of a country is written with hospitality, generosity and even gratitude", said Edi Rama, Prime Minister of Albania, on 8/11/2023.
Albania has announced that it will accept refugees only from Italy, and that it will not enter into an agreement with other countries. And regardless of the fact that some Albanians do not approve of accepting refugees, others are not against it - because of the gratitude they feel towards Italy. Because of the memories of the early 1990s, when thousands of Albanians were accepted by the Italian authorities. And the overcrowded cargo ship Vlora became a symbol of the Albanian refugee wave.
"The Agreement may be repeated in other countries. It can become part of the structural solution for the European Union," said Giorgia Meloni, Prime Minister of Italy, on 07/05/2024.
According to the European Commission, the agreement does not violate European law. The president of the European Comedy Ursula von der Leyen described it as "an example of thinking outside the box". However, human rights activists are skeptical. According to them, Italian justice will be difficult to deal with applications and complaints of people settled in another country. The UN has already announced that it disapproves of the agreement.