Tunisian President Kais Saied at the closing session of the New Global Financial Pact Summit. AFP
Tunisian President Kais Saied at the closing session of the New Global Financial Pact Summit. AFP
Tunisian President Kais Saied at the closing session of the New Global Financial Pact Summit. AFP
Tunisian President Kais Saied at the closing session of the New Global Financial Pact Summit. AFP

Tunisia returns €60 million to the EU as tensions over migration deal persist


Sunniva Rose
  • English
  • Arabic

Tunisia has returned €60 million ($63 million) provided by the EU in budgetary support, a sum which Tunisia's president Kais Saied described last week as mere charity, a representative for the bloc has told The National.

“The Commission has been informed that Tunisia returned the payment of €60 million,” the representative said in an email.

“This does not change the fact that we continue working on the five pillars of the MoU,” they added, in reference to an agreement struck this summer which aims at containing departures of migrants by sea from Tunisia towards the bloc.

The agreement worth overall €1 billion ($1.12 billion), has five pillars that include strengthening trade ties and a partnership in sustainable energy.

But its implementation is looking increasingly uncertain after Mr Saied rejected last week about €127 million in assistance from the EU. He said that Tunisia “accepts co-operation but not charity.”

The package included €67 million for Tunisia's coast guards to combat human traffickers and tighten border controls and €60 million in budgetary support, which was planned before this summer's agreement.

The EU's commissioner for neighbourhood and enlargement Oliver Varhelyi wrote on social media that Tunisia was free to “wire back the money.”

“Implementation of the MoU [memorandum of understanding] should continue once Tunisia returns to the spirit of our strategic & comprehensive partnership based on mutual respect,” he said on X, formerly Twitter.

According to Tunisian media reports, Tunis returned €60 million to the EU on October 9.

The implementation of the agreement has also caused a public spat between the EU Commission, the bloc's executive arm and the EU Council, where national leaders meet to decide on major decisions.

The Council has accused the Commission of excluding it from the pact, an accusation it rejects.

FIXTURES

Thu Mar 15 – West Indies v Afghanistan, UAE v Scotland
Fri Mar 16 – Ireland v Zimbabwe
Sun Mar 18 – Ireland v Scotland
Mon Mar 19 – West Indies v Zimbabwe
Tue Mar 20 – UAE v Afghanistan
Wed Mar 21 – West Indies v Scotland
Thu Mar 22 – UAE v Zimbabwe
Fri Mar 23 – Ireland v Afghanistan

The top two teams qualify for the World Cup

Classification matches
The top-placed side out of Papua New Guinea, Hong Kong or Nepal will be granted one-day international status. UAE and Scotland have already won ODI status, having qualified for the Super Six.

Thu Mar 15 – Netherlands v Hong Kong, PNG v Nepal
Sat Mar 17 – 7th-8th place playoff, 9th-10th place playoff

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Updated: October 12, 2023, 9:48 AM`