Spanish PM Pedro Sánchez is on a three-day tour of West Africa to reinforce bilateral relations with Mauritania, Gambia and Senegal, where the majority of migrant boats reaching the Canary Islands are being launched from.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Spain signed a cooperation with Mauritania in an effort to tackle irregular migration
00:07to the Canary Islands.
00:10Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez recognizes the country's need for migrants and does not
00:15intend to halt migration altogether, but instead wants to regulate the process.
00:20Migration is not a problem, it is a necessity that involves certain problems.
00:27And that is why we must impose formulas that allow us to manage in a human, safe and orderly
00:34way.
00:35The Canary Islands, close to the African coast, are used as a stepping stone for migrants
00:40and refugees to reach continental Europe.
00:45Since January, more than 22,000 migrants arrived on the shores of the Spanish archipelago.
00:51That is according to Spain's interior ministry.
00:56Speaking with Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani, Sanchez said he wants to introduce
01:02its circular migration program between the two nations.
01:07Sanchez's visit to Mauritania is part of a three-day tour of West Africa, with his next
01:12stop being Gambia and Senegal.
01:15These three countries are where the majority of migrant boats depart from to make the dangerous
01:19Atlantic journey to the Canary Islands.