Italy said today it will ask the EU to set up refugee processing camps in Libya, and threatened to 'hurt' Europe should it turn a deaf ear to the crisis on its shores.
The country is struggling to accommodate an endless wave of boat migrants, and a crackdown on security at the borders with France and Austria has exacerbated the situation, causing a bottleneck at Italy's train stations.
The crisis "should not be underestimated", Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said, as Austria, France and Switzerland expelled asylum seekers back onto Italian soil.
"Let me be clear, Europe's answers so far have not been good enough," Renzi added.
The EU is having difficulty achieving consensus for its proposed migrant distribution plan -- under which 24,000 refugees would be taken in by other countries -- but Italy is hoping an EU summit on June 25-26 will go even further.
"Redistributing just 24,000 people is almost a provocation," Renzi said.
"If Europe chooses solidarity, good. If it doesn't, we have Plan B ready. But it would first and foremost hurt Europe," he said, without providing details.
Renzi has come under pressure to take a stronger stance with the 28-member bloc, with the anti-establishment Five Star movement suggesting Italy threaten to freeze its EU budget contributions if aid is not forthcoming.
"I cannot reveal our Plan B," Interior Minister Angelino Alfano told Sky TG24, "but if Europe is not supportive, it will find itself dealing with a different Italy. We will not accept a selfish Europe."
Alfano said he would ask the EU at a meeting of interior ministers on Tuesday for "fair distribution of migrants, camps in Libya and a serious policy on repatriation" of economic migrants.
Any such plan for camps would hinge on Libya's opposing factions reaching a political agreement, or Italy convincing the UN to adopt a resolution.
Over 57,000 migrants and asylum seekers have been rescued at sea and brought to Italy so far this year -- up from 54,000 at the same time last year -- Renzi said, and Rome wants both a long-term solution and help from other countries now.
It wants the EU to forge repatriation deals with African nations and share the cost of returning home would-be economic migrants, who currently make up around 60 percent of those arriving by boat.
