Albania delays ratification of migrant deal with Italy

The agreement, which would see Italy build migrant processing centres on Albanian territory, has been criticised by opposition and rights groups and was challenged in court by lawmakers from Albania's opposition Democratic Party. Albania's parliament had been due to ratify the deal on Thursday, but a parliament spokeswoman said the vote had been delayed until all relevant documents from the court were available.

A vote in Albania's parliament to ratify a contested migrant deal with Italy was postponed on Thursday while lawmakers await documents from the Constitutional Court, which last week gave a green light to the plan. The agreement, which would see Italy build migrant processing centres on Albanian territory, has been criticised by opposition and rights groups and was challenged in court by lawmakers from Albania's opposition Democratic Party.

Albania's parliament had been due to ratify the deal on Thursday, but a parliament spokeswoman said the vote had been delayed until all relevant documents from the court were available. This is just a formality, but she did not say when the vote was likely to take place. Under the deal announced in November, EU member Italy would open two camps across the Adriatic Sea in Albania, which is not an EU member.

One camp would screen migrants on arrival and a second would detain them while asylum applications are processed. Migrants would then either be allowed to enter Italy or be repatriated. Opponents had argued it broke the constitution by transferring territory and state power to another country, a claim the court rejected.

The project has drawn comparisons with the British government's plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda, which has been challenged by Britain's Supreme Court. Brussels has since said that the Italian plans do not breach European Union law.

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