Boat migrants rocked by EU political storm arrive in Spain
Madrid said it has accepted an offer from France to take in some of the 629 migrants from the Aquarius rescue ship following a turbulent week that saw Italy spurning people plucked from the Mediterranean.
Migrants are seen after being rescued by MV Aquarius, a search and rescue ship run in partnership between SOS Mediterranee and Medecins Sans Frontieres in the central Mediterranean Sea, June 12, 2018.
An Italian coast guard ship arrived in the Spanish port of Valencia on Sunday, carrying migrants rescued by the Aquarius charity-run vessel, which Rome refused to allow to dock a week ago.
The coast guard ship is one of two Italian vessels that took on some of the Aquarius's passengers before escorting it to Spain, at the invitation of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
Spain swooped to help the group of mainly sub-Saharan Africans on board the Aquarius last week, offering the charity-run ship a berth 700 nautical miles away after Italy and Malta refused to let it dock.
After Italy's new government used the ship to assert its anti-immigrant credentials, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, in office for just over a week, took an opportunity to underline a more liberal stance.
Police and Civil Guard staff hold a briefing next to the point of arrival of refugee vessel Aquarius and two other Italian ships expected tomorrow at the port of Valencia, Spain, June 16, 2018.
But the plight of the Aquarius has highlighted the European Union's failure to agree on how to manage huge numbers of people fleeing poverty and conflict.
"People are coming to Europe seeking European values, of solidarity and support," Red Cross Secretary General Elhadj As Sy told a news conference in Valencia on Saturday.
"Anything less than that is a betrayal (of) Europe itself."
Pregnant women on Aquarius
A staff of 2,320, including volunteers, translators, police and health officials are awaiting the Aquarius and two Italian vessels that shared its passengers to make the voyage safer.
As soon as the boats arrive, the seven pregnant women on board will be immediately brought to land for check-ups, and everyone on board, including 123 minors, will be given psychological attention, Spanish Red Cross officials said.
Anti-migrant feeling has surged in Italy as more than 600,000 people have arrived on its shores over the past five years, helping to propel the nationalist League into a coalition government.
In Rome, thousands of people protested against Italy's anti-migrant policies, as they demanded the government find a more humane solution to an issue which has divided Europe.
Spaniards ready to help migrants
Far fewer migrants come to Spain, but the numbers are rising fast.
Most Spaniards support the idea of welcoming and helping to integrate refugees, pollsters say, allowing Sanchez, a Socialist, to offer migrant-friendly policies to voters who feel previous governments did not do enough.
France, which chided Italy for turning away the Aquarius, has offered to take in any passengers who qualify for asylum and want to go there.
Copyright © 2024 TRT World.