Roundup: Italian authorities praise EU agreement on refugees

Italian authorities on Thursday welcomed the measures European Union (EU) leaders agreed upon in order to tackle the refugee crisis.

"Last night was an important night for Italy," Prime Minister Matteo Renzi wrote on his social media account.

"It took six months and three European summits but, with the decision made last night, we can finally say immigration has become a European issue at all levels."

Early on Thursday, EU leaders pledged at least 1 billion euros (1.12 billion U.S. dollars) in extra funds to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the World Food Programme (WFP) and other aid agencies.

They agreed to boost controls at the EU external borders, while providing more help for Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, and other countries hosting the majority of about 4 million Syrian refugees.

Finally, they decided that at the so-called "hotspots," reception centers must be fully operational in front-line member states like Italy and Greece by November at the latest. This measure is to ensure the identification and registration of incoming people and distinguish those who would qualify for asylum from economic migrants.

In a previous meeting on Tuesday, EU ministers had agreed with a majority vote on a mandatory quota scheme to relocate 120,000 refugees among member states.

Italian authorities seemed particularly pleased by this point of the agreement, after long calling for a EU comprehensive approach to the crisis.

"The final document clearly says that hotspots, repatriation, and a fair sharing of refugees through the so-called relocation are three initiatives that are held together," Renzi said.

"This is a victory for those like Italy who have called for a common policy on migration since the first day," he added.

About half a million migrants have arrived in Europe this year. Italy has received 128,000 people so far this year, and some 170,000 in 2014, according to the UNHCR.

Italian Interior Minister Angelino Alfano also praised the EU agreement.

"The concept of 'sharing', which has long been promoted by Italy only, has been recognized," Alfano said in an interview with State Radio Rai 1 on Thursday.

"Rather than the Dublin Agreement, according to which every EU member state has to keep its migrants, the principle of a fair distribution throughout Europe, has won."

This new arrangement must become permanent, he added. "If there is the free movement right within the EU, indeed a European asylum right must also exist," Alfano stressed.

Also on Thursday, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini was due to pay a visit to the headquarters of the anti-smuggling naval mission EUNAVFOR Med in Rome.

On Wednesday, Mogherini had stressed the crucial role of EU's external action on refugees and migration.

"The external dimension of our work... is probably the most fundamental one, but also the one bringing results in a mid-long term," she said.

Even though the EU is now concentrating on the massive refugee inflow through the Western Balkan route, it should not forget the Mediterranean that was at the core of the crisis until a few months ago, Mogherini warned.

"We have prepared for the second phase of EUNAVFOR Med, that is to say fighting traffickers and smugglers," she said. Endit