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MW 13 June 2018

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maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 13 JUNE 2018 6 NEWS ANALYSIS SINCE 2013 Malta has been spared from boat arrivals thanks to an agreement with centre-left governments led by Enrico Letta, Matteo Renzi and Paolo Gentilo- ni who accepted to take respon- sibility for all migrants rescued in Malta's "search and rescue area". But following elections in spring a new government was formed between the anti-immigrant Le- ga and the anti-establishment 5 Star Movement. One of the casualties of this po- litical earthquake was the infor- mal agreement, which stopped boat arrivals to Malta. Basically the situation reverted to that before 2013. Underlying the dispute between Malta and Italy was the latter's insistence that Malta should take in all immigrants rescued in its oversized search and rescue area: at some 250,000 square kilome- tres, roughly the size of Great Britain, spanning from Tunisia to Greece. Malta has always insisted that rescued migrants should be taken to the closest safe port of call, which in many cases would be Lampedusa, even if the mi- grants had been saved in Malta's SAR. This means that in the absence of an agreement resolving this long-standing dispute, Malta and Italy are destined to remain at loggerheads. This is because Lampedusa will always remain the nearest 'port of call' for immigrants res- cued by ships run by NGOs like Medicines Sans Frontier (Doc- tors without borders) operating on the edge of Libya's search and rescue zone. In the absence of these NGO ships, it is also very likely that tragedies like the 2015 tragedy which saw 700 migrants drown- ing just outside Libyan waters, could recur. The only difference between now and the pre-2013 days is that the Lega is even stronger, no longer subjugated to Silvio Berlusoni, who had a moderating influence on the Lega's former Home Affairs Minister Roberto Maroni, It was only after a four-day standoff and a telephone conver- sation between Gonzi and Silvio Berlusconi, that Italy's Justice Minister Roberto Maroni gave in to accept 140 migrants stranded on the high seas on the Turkish cargo ship Pinar E, into Lampe- dusa in April 2009. A second major standoff took place in April 2011 when a boat of 171 immigrants was rescued by the AFM near Lampedusa. The Italian authorities refused entry, forcing the Maltese vessel to bring the migrants into Malta. Joseph Muscat actually praised Italy for defending its national interest by blocking the boat's entry. Ironically, back in 2013 Mus- cat's refusal to accept a tanker (The Salamis) carrying 102 mi- grants rescued at sea in the Liby- an search and rescue region, was praised in the Lega's newspa- per La Padania, which carried a headline on its front page which read: "C'e' chi dice no" (Some say no). Why a European solution is un- likely? Malta and Italy are tradition- ally strong advocates of reform- ing the EU's migration policies. In his first speech in office, Italy's new Prime Minister, Giuseppe Conte, called for the "obligatory" and "automatic" redistribution among EU member states of asylum seekers being processed in Italy. Current rules put the 'burden' on those receiving the influx. Therefore, one possible solution to the current impasse is that of Italy and Malta making a common front in Europe. Yet Salvini himself may realise that the right-wing tide of which he is one of the main representa- tives will make burden sharing between European partners even more unlikely. For it is extremely unlikely that right-wing populists in Hungary and Austria will accept migrants rescued by Italy and Malta. For how can Salvini expect fel- low far rightists to accept mi- grants rescued in the central Mediterranean when they had blocked their borders to Syrian refugees coming from the Bal- kans? In situations where each coun- try seeks to defend its own 'na- tional interest' there is little room for 'burden sharing.' So, ultimately, Salvini may well prefer a situation where more countries emulate him by clos- ing their borders than forcing like-minded governments to take a fair share of migrants from the Mediterranean. Moreover, for Salvini legal bickering with Malta may well be a convenient way of stopping migration without looking inhu- mane, even if expecting a small island to cover all the border may also look unrealistic. However, Salvini does not gov- ern alone and his actions may alienate him from his partners in government; the Five Star Move- ment, that are less hawkish on migration. Muscat's poisoned chalice Joseph Muscat may well have done what was expected of him in such a difficult circumstance by standing his ground against Salvini. It was also understandable that in his first face-off with Sal- vini, Muscat could not afford to nudge, as this would have set a precedent for the future. Still, had Pedro Sanchez not saved the day, Muscat might well have ended up in a very messy situation. Had the situation dragged on by a few more days, Muscat might well have ended up having to choose between up- holding an abstract legal princi- ple and saving 629 human lives. Salvini vs Muscat: How the Maltese PM grapples with Gonzi's pre-2013 problem JAMES DEBONO analyses what lies behind the latest clash between Malta and Italy over the fate of 629 migrants stranded on the Aquarius and why the situation is likely to escalate in the future ANALYSIS

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