EU leaders focus on patrols to tackle migrant crisis

EU leaders focused on how to patrol the EU’s borders to dissuade smugglers from putting migrants on boats in the knowledge the patrols would have to pick up anybody found in trouble.

However, the search for solidarity among EU member states and the hope that they would agree to share the burden of the thousands of migrants that arrive in the frontline countries largely failed.

A pilot project being pushed by the European Commission that would see countries agree to take a share of the asylumseekers that arrive mainly in Italy, Greece, and Malta got a cool reception. The commission had proposed launching the pilot, with 10,000 migrants distributed among all the EU states, but France and others argued for half this, while the UK’s David Cameron indicated he was not in favour.