Nato seeks ‘response’ to migrant crisis

LISBON: The plight of migrants in the Mediterranean requires a “comprehensive response”, Nato’s head Jens Stoltenberg said on Monday, adding that the alliance would help by trying to stabilise countries in the region.
“We have to be united to tackle this crisis,” he said during a visit to Lisbon.
His comments came a week after a shipwreck off the Libyan coast left more than 750 people dead.
Nato’s role in stabilising countries like Afghanistan was part of the broader approach to the refugee problem in the Mediterranean, Stoltenberg said.
“This is not only about northern Africa. We know the people trying to cross the sea come from as far as Asia, Afghanistan or the Middle East.”
Last week, European Union leaders agreed to triple funding for the bloc’s maritime search-and-rescue operation as part of a plan to deal with the spike in migrants undertaking the perilous Mediterranean journey to Europe.
The EU is also considering possible military action against people smugglers.
Stoltenberg welcomed the EU’s decision to increase its presence at sea, adding that human trafficking was the “main problem”.