The Italian Senate has finally approved the agreement with Albania, which provides for the creation of two closed centers for illegal immigrants.
The centers will be created in an area in the north of Albania, with a capacity of up to 3000 people. According to the provisions of the Italian-Albanian cooperation protocol, irregular immigrants rescued by the coast guard will be transferred to these two structures, and will be sent to these centers, where they will be able to apply for asylum in Italy and wait for a corresponding response.
Catholic Bishop Giancarlo Perego, president of the “Migrantes” foundation, which provides support for immigrants and refugees, expressed his strong opposition to the agreement. “Once again it is proven that there is no capacity to create an extended reception system in Italy”, the Catholic cleric emphasized, adding that the money approved for the cooperation protocol with Albania, 673 million euros, “is actually being thrown into the sea”. .
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani replied that “it is not money that is thrown into the sea, but an amount that is spent properly, with the aim of dealing with immigration together with a candidate country for membership in the European Union”.
