Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser is visiting the North African country together with her French counterpart Gerald Darmanin. Tunisia is currently one of the most important transit countries for irregular migrants who make their way to Italy in unsafe boats. Tunisians are also in the boats, hoping for a better future in Europe. The repatriations to Tunisia did work, “but not to the extent that we would like,” said Faeser in Tunis.
Talent partnerships should help
Before her departure, Faeser said: “We want the human rights of refugees to be protected and the terrible deaths in the Mediterranean to stop.”
On Sunday, Faeser, who was traveling to Tunisia for the first time in her capacity, visited a federal police project office in Tunis. The Federal Police has had a project in Tunisia since 2015. It works with the National Guard, Border Police and National Police. According to the Federal Ministry of the Interior, the aim is to “establish effective police structures based on the rule of law and human rights principles”. Priorities are, among other things, the reduction of irregular migration, sea rescue and the fight against terrorism.
Migration and counter-terrorism are the focus
The interior minister is scheduled to hold talks with President Kais Saied and interior minister Kamel Fekih on migration issues and counter-terrorism in the capital on Monday. According to the minister, this is about facilitating deportations to the Arab country. On the other hand, Tunisian workers should have more opportunities to migrate to Germany for work. In her first conversation with her counterpart, Faeser emphasized the “common goals and interests”. Fekih said that this also includes German direct investments.
A week ago, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was in Tunis. She promised the country, which was suffering from economic problems, financial aid of up to 900 million euros. That is about three times the amount with which Brussels supported Tunis last year on average.
number of refugees is increasing
In the first five months of this year, 773 boats with around 26,000 migrants on board were counted. In the same period last year, there were more than 200 departures with almost 4,000 refugees and migrants who set off from Tunisia to Europe.
nob/hf (dpa, afp)
Source: DW
