Tunisia snubs EU by sending back £52m in aid

The Tunisian Coast Guard prevents migrants from entering Europe illegally from Sfax, Tunisia, via the Mediterranean Sea. Photo: YASSINE GAIDI/ANADOLU AGENCY/GETTY/ANADOLU

Tunisia has returned €60m (£52m) of EU money in a show of snub to Brussels, dealing a blow to a landmark agreement designed to stop migrant boats crossing the Mediterranean to reach Italy .

Kais Said, the Tunisian president, called the amount of money “ridiculous” and “an insult to our dignity.”

“Our people reject charity,” he said in a Facebook post Wednesday night in what he called a strategic partnership based on equality and respect.

The European Commission confirmed on Thursday that it had received the returned funds.< /p>

Mr Sayed's move appears to have called the bluff of the European commissioner, who has taken to social media to publicly call on Tunisians to return their money if they are unhappy with the amount.

Mutual respect

Oliver Várhelyi, the enlargement commissioner, said last week that Tunisia requested 60 million euros in budget support in August and it was paid on October 3.

“Tunisia is free to cancel its official payment and transfer the money to EU budget,” he wrote on Twitter.

Expressing dissatisfaction with Tunisia’s position, he called on the North African country to “return to the spirit of our strategic cooperation.” and a comprehensive partnership based on mutual respect.»

The strategic partnership now appears to be under enormous strain after the Tunisian president accepted the challenge and sent the money back.

The refunds appear to undermine an agreement signed in July. The EU promised to provide Tunisia hundreds of millions of euros in aid, trade and investment in exchange for stopping migrant boats crossing the Mediterranean.

The deal is at the heart of Georgia Meloni's efforts , Prime Minister of Italy, to reduce the huge number of migrants reaching her country's shores.

Case Said, Tunisia's president, said the amount of EU money «degrades our dignity.» Photo: Johanna Geron/POOL REUTERS/Pool Reuters

139,000 people have arrived this year, many of them reaching the tiny southern island of Lampedusa. The number of arrivals exceeds the 74,000 recorded during the same period last year and the 48,000 recorded in 2021.

The Tunisia deal was largely based on an agreement reached with Turkish President Erdogan in 2016, under which the EU promised Ankara 6 billion euros in exchange for Turkey preventing Syrian, Iraqi and Afghan refugees from crossing the Aegean Sea to the Greek islands.

It was signed with great fanfare by Ms Meloni, Mr Said, Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of the Netherlands, and Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, at a ceremony in the capital of Tunisia.

>

In Italy, opposition lawmakers said the agreement now appears to be finalized.

The agreement with Tunisia is now “a complete failure,” said Nicola Danti, a member of the European Parliament for Italia Viva, the centrist party led by Matteo Renzi. , a former prime minister.

The “promises and propaganda” made by Meloni’s government “have come to nothing,” he said.

Empty-handed

Laura Ferrara, an MEP from the opposition Five Star Movement, said: “The Tunisian government has returned 60 million euros that were sent less than 10 days ago. This is a diplomatic and political failure for those who thought they could use the “Erdogan method” in North Africa.”

“On the migrant issue, the Meloni government promised Luna and now finds itself empty-handed. . And the boats continue to arrive continuously,” she added.

Maintaining good relations with Tunisia is crucial to the EU's efforts to stem the flow of migrants, since most boats arriving on the bloc's shores originate from the country.

Under an agreement struck in July, the EU promised Tunisia 105 million euros to help fight the worsening crisis, 150 million euros in budget support and more than 450 million euros for renewable energy and other investments.

The European Commission said on Thursday that the deal was still in effect and that “further payments” would be made to Tunisia over time.

Even though Tunisia returned 60 million euros, “this does not change the fact that we continue to work on the core principles of the Memorandum of Understanding,” the spokesperson said.