Hommam Al Nassim 
The European Union plans to provide funding of up to €164.5 million to Tunisia’s security forces over three years, as part of the Brussels plan to combat illegal migration.
The British newspaper “Financial Times” reported on Sunday that this funding comes in the context of increasing political pressure faced by European countries to reduce the number of illegal arrivals, which prompted them to increase funding for countries witnessing a large influx of migrants towards Europe.
According to unnamed informed sources, Brussels pledged 105 million euros in funding for migration to Tunisia in a previous agreement, but most of that amount has not yet been disbursed.
According to details in the budget, the EU intends to spend more money on migration through various funds over the next three years, allocating about two-thirds of the expected amount for security and border management.
EU-funded programmes in Tunisia include training for security forces, including a National Maritime Guard training academy, and funds will be used to purchase equipment such as radars and boats to bolster security efforts.
Tunisian security forces are intensifying their efforts to intercept boats in the Mediterranean, especially after the rise in the number of migrants arriving in Italy, where about 81,000 people were intercepted last year while trying to cross illegally.
According to the newspaper, citing European diplomatic sources and humanitarian staff, some members of the Tunisian security forces are accused of participating in “illegal arrests and deportations” of migrants and asylum seekers, deporting them to the Algerian and Libyan borders without taking appropriate legal action.
The newspaper quoted the official spokesman for the Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights, Ramadan Ben Amor, as saying that “the Tunisian authorities have been using a new deportation mechanism since last August, as all those intercepted at sea are automatically deported to the Algerian and Libyan borders.”
This month, the EU signed more agreements with African countries to prevent migration to Europe despite human rights concerns, pledging €210 million to Mauritania, including €60 million to combat migration, and €7.4 billion to Egypt, including at least €200 million for migration-related measures as well.
Last year, the EU also pledged Tunisia 150 million euros to support the public budget separately from immigration, a sum delivered this month.
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