Deportation plans in limbo - European Court examines Meloni's controversial Albania model

The prestige project of Italy's right-wing prime minister for asylum seeker camps outside the EU is in jeopardy. Who gets to decide which countries of origin are considered safe? The verdict follows.

The European Court of Justice is hearing for the first time the controversial "Albania model" of Italy's right-wing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni for the rapid deportation of Mediterranean refugees. The ECJ in Luxembourg must clarify whether - and if so, under what conditions - decisions can be made on asylum applications in camps outside the EU. Oral proceedings began on Tuesday. The verdict is expected to follow in a few months.

The decision is eagerly awaited, especially in Italy, but also by many other EU governments. Meloni is the first European head of government to finance camps in a non-EU country for many millions of euros. However, the two facilities in Albania have been practically empty since they opened in October because Italian courts stopped the plans. No one has been deported from there so far.

Since autumn 2022, Meloni has led a coalition of three right-wing parties that has declared the fight against irregular migration to be one of its most important goals. This particularly concerns the flight of hundreds of thousands of people across the Mediterranean, often on boats that are barely seaworthy. The plan is actually to stop migrants on the high seas before they arrive in Europe and bring them to Albania. There, Italian officials will then make a fast-track decision. The aim is a quick deportation.

However, the Italian model has not worked even once so far: the judiciary in Rome has stopped the plans in three cases since October. All 66 men who have been arrested in Albania so far have had to be brought to Italy. Meloni and her right-wing coalition accuse the national judiciary of blocking the plan for political reasons. The judges have rejected this on several occasions.

The camps are only intended for adult men who come from so-called safe third countries - not for women and minors. It is now to be clarified whether a government can draw up a list of safe third countries itself or can only set criteria for it.

Specifically, the case before the ECJ concerns two men from Bangladesh whose asylum applications were rejected in a fast-track procedure. From the perspective of the government in Rome, Bangladesh is a safe third country. However, the responsible Italian court doubts the legality of the relevant decree.