The Secretary of State for European Affairs, Tiago Antunes, affirms that Portugal is available to welcome “some people” who arrived in recent days by boat to the Italian island of Lampedusa.
Tiago Antunes admits that he is not yet in a position to provide a specific figure, but affirms that he has already expressed his availability to the European authorities.
“We have always expressed our solidarity and availability to welcome migrants when these situations arise and, therefore, in the face of the great pressure that is occurring or when there is a shipwreck, our attitude is always one of solidarity and willingness to welcome,” he says. .the Secretary of State.
Tiago Antunes, specifying that this is a gesture within the framework of the voluntary solidarity mechanism, admits that it is not yet possible for him to provide a specific figure.
“I am not yet in a position to give a figure, but naturally we have already expressed our willingness to welcome some people,” he said in Brussels, speaking to journalists on the sidelines of a General Affairs Council.
The Secretary of State recognizes that “there are very big challenges in this immigration issue and it is necessary to put an end to the business of human traffickers and this is a very important dimension.”
Criticizing the “exploitation of the fragile situation of some people, who are taken to a risky situation at sea”, Tiago Antunes maintained that “it is necessary to act decisively to put an end to this business model and it is also necessary to create and secure migratory”.
“The best way to avoid these scourges is to express the will to accept workers, which, in fact, Europe needs,” he stated, recalling that “one of the main problems of our SMEs is precisely the lack of labor and, therefore , need for labor and this is one of the ways so that this labor, which we need in the European Union, is also through migration.”
Source: TSF
