European ministers are holding a crisis meeting after more than 700 migrants drowned this weekend while attempting to reach the Italian shore. <br /><br /> Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni appealed for a cohesive EU-wide response to the growing numbers of migrants making the dangerous Mediterranean crossing. <br /><br /> “It’s no longer possible to sustain a situation where, in a European emergency, we are responding with Italian resources and commitments alone,” he said. <br /><br /> Over two thousand people have died this year setting sail from Libya. Thousands more have been rescued, with Italy carrying most of the burden. <br /><br /> Sweden’s Foreign Minister Margot Wallström called for the EU to boost its Frontex regional border agency. She added that EU member states should also share the responsibility of helping refugees in a “much more even way, a more fair way.” <br /><br /> One option under consideration is for member states to set up a full-fledged EU search and rescue operation to patrol its southern waters.
