Why is Switzerland tightening border controls with Italy?

On September 24, Swiss authorities announced that they would strengthen border controls with Italy and refuse to accept migrants from the island of Lampedusa.

Thụy Sĩ tăng cường kiểm soát biên giới với Italy

Switzerland will increasingly tighten its border with Italy in the face of the current migration situation. (Source: BNN)

The Swiss newspaper Tages-Anzeiger reported that the Swiss government has decided to strengthen the Ticino border in the face of an increasing flow of undocumented migrants.

Previously, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen asked Switzerland to take in migrants from Lampedusa, but was rejected on the grounds that "this is not currently planned".

In the past week alone, 11,000 undocumented migrants have landed on Lampedusa, Italy's southernmost island, where the number of migrants is nearly twice as large as the permanent population.

According to Mr. Filippo Mannino, Mayor of Lampedusa, the situation on the island is “close to the end”, so the Italian government is now taking steps to prevent an impending migration crisis.

Italy is now calling on European Union (EU) leaders to implement urgent measures regarding the migration situation, demanding a united approach to the reception and distribution of refugees at the EU level.

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