EU Commissioner of Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship Dimitris Avramopoulos arrived in Malta on Thursday, where he expressed the Union’s solidarity to the island nation in its efforts to deal with a growing tide of illegal migrants attempting to reach its territory.

The continuing influx of illegal immigrants was the top issue on his agenda of talks with the Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and other top ministers.

The European Commissioner stressed that he is fully aware of the pressure faced by Malta, a small island south of Sicily.

Furthermore, he noted that “managing such pressure” is not the work of a single Member State or only of the European Commission, but a common responsibility.

Avramopoulos also said the European Commission will continue to support Malta and all Member States facing similar problems in the Mediterranean, while he further emphasized that just yesterday the Commission adopted a program of 17.7 million euros to support Malta regarding the asylum, immigration and integration of migrants.