The European Union will ask "
explanations
" to the Libyan authorities after an incident involving the coast guard of this country, accused of having prevented the ship Ocean Viking from rescuing migrants by firing shots in the air.
"
We are going to ask for explanations and clarifications (from the Libyan authorities, editor's note) on what happened, why it happened and what follow-up will be given
", declared Monday March 27 Peter Stano, spokesman for the leader of Diplomacy Josep Borrell, during the Commission's daily press briefing.
The question is whether the Libyan Coast Guard vessel involved in the incident was funded with EU assistance, the spokesperson added.
Accusation of SOS Mediterranean
The NGO SOS Méditerranée, whose ship Ocean Viking rescues migrants at sea, accused the Libyan coast guard on Saturday March 25 of having "deliberately" endangered
its
teams and people in distress by firing shots at the air to prevent him from performing a rescue.
According to SOS Méditerranée, around 80 people were eventually intercepted by the Libyan Coast Guard and returned to Libya.
The EU is cooperating with the Libyan Coast Guard by providing assistance, equipment and vessels.
According to Brussels, this agreement aims to save the lives of migrants in the Mediterranean but it is regularly denounced by NGOs and the UN, which underline the ill-treatment to which migrants forcibly brought back to Libya are subjected.
“
For us, saving lives comes first, the rights of migrants come first
,” said Peter Stano, acknowledging that there was no “
ideal solution
” due to the situation in Libya, plunged into chaos since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi's regime in 2011.
Read also Are the NGOs that save migrants at sea in cahoots with the smugglers?
"
Our cooperation (with the Libyan Coast Guard) is flexible (...), we adapt our actions according to developments on the ground and the behavior of our partners
", he added.
The spokesman recalled that following a similar incident last summer, in which the Libyan Coast Guard threatened migrants with the use of their weapons, "the commander (of the ship) was
fired
".
The central Mediterranean is the most dangerous migration route in the world, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
The UN agency estimates that in 2022, 1,417 migrants disappeared there.