Swiss border guard to help Frontex in Italy

On October 3, 2014, people wearing white sheets commemorated the first anniversary of the shipwreck in Lampedusa, Italy, in which more than 360 refugees lost their lives. Keystone

Switzerland has agreed to send a Swiss border guard to Italy to participate in the new Triton mission as a debriefer. In early October Europe's border control agency, Frontex, had asked member states to provide personnel, planes and patrol boats.

The Triton mission will replace Mare Nostrum, or “Our Sea”, an Italian operation launched in October 2013 after 366 people drowned when their boat capsized just a mile from the Italian island of Lampedusa.

Mare Nostrum has saved more than 144,000 shipwrecked refugees in both Italian and international waters. In spite of this, several thousand refugees have died trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea.

Triton will focus on better protecting the EU borders, as well as rescuing refugees in distress.

The border guard to be sent by Switzerland will belong to one of the seven teams who will question refugees about the reasons for their flight, the route they took to escape, and any people who helped smuggle them out of their country of origin. She is expected to participate from November 23, 2014, to January 9, 2015.

Another Swiss border guard had already been sent to Italy to take part in preparations for the Triton mission. As a member of Schengen, Switzerland has also participated in other Frontex missions. Whether it will continue to participate in the coming year will be decided at a later date.