Morocco rejects the idea of setting up reception centers for migrants outside the European Union in order to manage migration flows outside its borders, said today the head of Moroccan diplomacy, Nasser Burita.
"Morocco rejects and has always rejected such methods of managing the issue of migratory flows," he said after meeting in Rabat with his Spanish counterpart Josep Borrell. Burita spoke of "easy solutions" and "unproductive mechanisms".
Tunisia, Albania and Morocco are among the countries where Brussels would like to set up refugee reception centers or "disembarkation platforms outside Europe", an issue to be discussed at the EU leaders' summit today and tomorrow.
Spain, Italy and Greece are the three main gateways for migrants to Europe. Although the number of migrants trying to cross the Mediterranean fell by half in early 2018 compared to the same period in 2017, it has tripled in Spain, according to data from the International Organization for Migration. From January 1 to June 20, 12.155 migrants arrived in Spain via the so-called "western" transit route. During the same period, 960 migrants drowned in the Mediterranean and 292 of them trying to reach Spain.
Last Monday alone, the Spanish Coast Guard rescued 616 migrants.