The European Union will take a firmer line with Libyan authorities over a surge in migrant departures across the Mediterranean, EU Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner said on Tuesday during a visit to Athens.
Brunner said he would travel to Libya next week alongside officials from Greece, Italy and Malta to press both governments in the divided country to take stronger action to prevent migrant boats from heading toward Europe.
“Libya is, of course, at the top of the agenda, and we’re traveling together to Libya next week because we have to be fast, I think, and firm,” Brunner told reporters after meeting Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
The delegation is expected to hold talks with representatives from both the United Nations-recognized government in Tripoli and the rival administration based in the country’s east.
“That is actually a question which bothers us quite a lot at the moment,” Brunner added.