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Spanish Foreign Minister guarantees Canaries Frontex patrols
By m.p - Jun 13, 2007 - 9:56 PM
ALSO SEE : • Immigrant boat reaches Gran Canaria with dead passenger - Jun 27, 2007 - 11:17 PM

The Foreign Minister, Miguel Ángel Moratinos. Photo – EFE Archives.
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Miguel Ángel Moratinos was speaking after the Frontex Deputy Director said earlier this week that budget restrictions and technical reasons made permanent patrols impossible
The Foreign Minister says he can guarantee that the Frontex patrols will remain in place off the Canary Islands on a permanent basis.

Miguel Ángel Moratinos was speaking after a meeting of Spanish Ambassadors to Africa, which closed in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria on Wednesday.

His words follow comments earlier this week from Gil Arias, Deputy Director of Frontex, who said that budgetary restrictions and technical reasons make it impossible for the EU borders control agency patrols to continue permanently.

EFE quoted Moratinos saying he has spoken to the European Commission’s Vice President, Franco Frattini, and can ‘guarantee that Frontex will continue on the Canaries.’

The Minister said Frontex is a new body which was born at the instigation of Spain, and that what is needed are more human and material resources, with an increase in both quality and quantity. He said Spain would push for that at further meetings which are to take place, adding that the 7,000 repatriations to Senegal would have been ‘unthinkable’ without the political will of both Spain and Senegal.


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ALSO SEE :
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