Europe’s concern over the sharp increase in migrant arrivals from Tunisia in the first months of the year is not diminishing. In an attempt to reverse the curve as summer approaches, France and Germany have dispatched their respective interior ministers, Gérald Darmanin and Nancy Faeser, to the Tunisian capital for a two-day visit. Following a meeting with President Kaïs Saïed, the French Minister announced the release of “bilateral aid” from France: 25.8 million euros to support local efforts in the fight against clandestine migration.
Concretely, these funds should be used “to acquire the necessary equipment and organize useful training, in particular for Tunisian police and border guards to contain the irregular flow of migrants and promote the return of these migrants”, he said during the meeting. ‘a press conference.
In other words, provide material and human support to Tunis in order to prevent departures and encourage interceptions at sea. France’s personal contribution comes on top of the 100 million euros provided for the same purpose and promised by the President of European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, during her visit to Tunis on June 11.
In the morning, the two ministers met their Tunisian counterpart Kamel Feki, then Tunisian President Kaïs Saïed, who expressed his refusal to make his country Europe’s border guard, a position he has constantly maintained. repeat over the past few weeks. “I reiterate again that Tunisia can only monitor its own borders,” he said during the meeting, according to the minutes released by the Tunisian presidency.
An ambivalent posture
Mr. Saïed insisted that Tunisia would not be a “country of settlement” for migrants either, as the Europeans agreed on June 8 on a “migration pact”. The latter paves the way in particular for the expulsion of migrants to “safe third countries” which could possibly include Tunisia, which is a land of transit for many sub-Saharans seeking to reach Europe.
However, the authorities of Tunis have always refused to welcome these undesirable non-Tunisian nationals in Europe. Just as they have declined European offers to host on their soil a “regional landing platform” for migrants shipwrecked in the Mediterranean, a formula envisaged in 2018 by the European Council to outsource the processing of asylum applications to southern countries. ‘asylum.
But, on the rest, the words of Kaïs Saïed are contradicted by the active role of Tunisia in the fight against immigration to Europe: more than 23,000 people who left from the Tunisian coast have already been prevented from reaching the Italy by the Maritime National Guard in the first five months of the year, three times more than in the corresponding period of 2022, according to data from the Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights.
By going to the Tunisian capital, Mr. Darmanin understood this ambivalent posture. “We are sensitive to the idea that Tunisia is not the border guard of the European Union, it is not its vocation,” he said, referring to the words of the Tunisian president. He nevertheless stressed the need to work jointly with the country to limit departures from its shores to a “minimum”. In exchange, Paris undertakes to help Tunis cope with migratory flows from southern Sahelian countries, thanks to its “privileged diplomatic relations” with these same states.
Security approach
By deciding to equip and train the Tunisian border guards, France is choosing the security approach in a country in full authoritarian turn while Mr. Saïed has monopolized all the powers during these last two years. The question of the situation of human rights and individual freedoms has, it seems, been completely avoided during these meetings.
Paris also closes its eyes to the numerous accusations against the Maritime National Guard from exiles – including people interviewed by Le Monde – for acts of violence during interception operations at sea, some of which would have led to shipwrecks. Actions denounced by several civil society organizations. France’s priority is to strengthen its cooperation with the Tunisian authorities – particularly in terms of security – in the hope of obtaining better readmission of Tunisian migrants residing illegally on its soil.
The joint trip by the Franco-German duo comes in the wake of the Italian diplomatic initiative led by Giorgia Meloni in recent weeks. The President of the Italian Council made a first visit on June 6, followed by a second five days later in the company of Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Ursula von der Leyen. Ms. Meloni has thus taken the lead in the Tunisian case while the European Union is concerned at the highest level about the economic difficulties that the country is going through.
France and Germany seem to have stayed away from this initiative, which ended with the announcements by the President of the European Commission of financial assistance to Tunisia of up to 900 million euros, conditional however on the signing by Tunis of an IMF plan providing for a loan of 1.9 billion dollars (1.75 billion euros) in exchange for structural reforms.
In Tunis, the French minister did not fail to remind the press that the envelope announced by Ursula von der Leyen was allowed thanks to the European Union budget to which Paris and Berlin contribute 40%. “I think that without the Franco-German couple there cannot be a functioning Europe,” he insisted. In addition, Mr. Darmanin has never hidden his skepticism about the policy of the Italian leader, whom he had considered in particular “unable to solve migration problems”.
Asked about this crossover of European leaders, he preferred to highlight the points of agreement such as the “historic agreement” on the European migration pact obtained thanks to “support” from Italy on the “French proposal” , he specified. Emmanuel Macron also invited Mr. Saïed to participate in the summit for a new global financial pact to be held on June 22 and 23 in Paris.