It is initially only a preliminary solution. But at least Germany, France, Italy and Malta have agreed on the key by which to distribute migrants rescued from distress. "We have found arrangements for a temporary emergency mechanism that will help Italy and Malta," said Federal Interior Minister Horst Seehofer (CSU) after a meeting with his colleagues in Valletta, Malta. He was "highly satisfied" with the result of the meeting.
Seehofer had previously made the inclusion of a quarter of the rescued refugees from Italy by Germany in prospect. France could take over another quarter. In addition, Croatia, Finland, Ireland, Lithuania, Luxembourg and Portugal have pledged their participation.
For such a cooperation now "clear requirements for the procedures" and "clear deadlines" for the distribution of the refugees were developed, said Seehofer. The exact level of distribution rates still needs to be discussed because it depends on the number of participating EU countries. The question should be finally clarified at an EU interior minister meeting on 8 October.
Finally, it had to be clarified in each individual case which countries are ready to accept the migrants. Since July 2018, Germany has agreed to accept 565 migrants rescued from distress. Only 225 of them have reached the Federal Republic so far.
The Law of the Sea states that people must be rescued in distress. Rescuers must then be taken to a safe place - a port or another ship. According to the law on port rights, entry into the port must be permitted if the lives of people are in danger.
The Monday agreement was reached at a meeting of interior ministers from Germany, France, Italy and Malta. Finland, which currently holds the EU Presidency, and the EU Commission were also represented.
The EU has been arguing for years about dealing with migrants rescued from unseaworthy boats in the Mediterranean. The background to this is that due to the resistance of countries such as Poland and Hungary, there is currently no system for the equitable distribution of refugees.