Brussels, 06/10/2010 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 6 October 2010, the European Commission welcomed the first steps in cooperation between the EU and Libya on immigration issues. After a three-day official visit to Libya with EU Neighbourhood Policy Commissioner Stefan Füle, EU Home Affairs Commissioner Cecilia Malmström said that the EU would be cooperating with Libya but it was not an easy process and would taken time, but at least the first step had been taken on all issues relating to asylum and immigration.
During their trip, the two Commissioners reached agreement with the Libyan government on a cooperation agenda to help Libya strengthen the fight against illegal immigration from its shores to the EU and also so boost refugees' rights (see EUROPE 10229). The Home Affairs Commissioner said this showed that there was an opening on the Libyan side and the EU has the political will to engage in dialogue. She said the next phase would be looking at the details and identifying projects where the two sides can work together in practice. She did not set any timeline for practical implementation of the agreement. EU funding of €50 million will be available for 2011-2013 to help the Libyan government improve housing for refugees, for example, but Malmström was at pains to point out that the money would be subject to strict rules and used for projects that would be carefully assessed and mentored. She regretted the fact that Libya has no plans to sign the Geneva Convention on refugees, despite the fact that it has signed the African Unity Organisation (AUO) convention that she said was 'similar' to the Geneva convention in terms of the duty to cooperate with international organisations on asylum and immigration issues. The Commissioner admitted that it was very difficult to know how many would-be European immigrants were present in Libya because the Libyan government talked about anywhere between one million and three million in total. The International Migration Office suggests 1.5 million, mostly from East and West Africa, but also from Pakistan. The Commissioner said that very few immigrants were arriving in Europe at the moment, which is another reason why the EU wants to identify the individuals who are in genuine need of international protection. She said she had 'heard' the request from the Libyan government for €5 billion in EU aid a year in this connection. She said the government had said that they were not expecting a cheque for 5 billion euros but would spend the money on regional and overall development. Malmström said that the sum in question was the amount that the EU gives every year to the whole of Africa in development aid an it did not have this amount of cash to give to Libya. She said the EU suggested €50 million. (B.C. trans fl)