Tunisia has agreed to buy six German navy patrol boats as part of a joint drive to stop illegal migrants crossing to Europe from North Africa, Tunisia's defence minister said on Tuesday. There is growing concern in the European Union over the thousands of illegal migrants who cross the Mediterranean from North Africa or Turkey, often in small, unseaworthy craft. Germany has proposed setting up holding centres in North Africa where would-be migrants would be held while EU officials processed their claims and repatriated those not meeting entry criteria. Italy, on whose shores many illegal migrants land, has backed the plan, but other EU members have expressed concern over human rights and cost issues. Tunisian Defence Minister Dali Jazi said after talks in Berlin with his German counterpart Peter Struck that the two nations had agreed on joint efforts to fight illegal migration, which he said posed a growing problem to both Europe and North African countries. "We have a problem with security measures, a problem securing our borders against terrorism," he told reporters after the Berlin meeting. "I thank Minister Struck and the German government for the agreement we have reached to buy six patrol boats from the German armed forces to improve surveillance of our coast and any movements of migrants," he said. --SP 2303 Local Time 2003 GMT
