<p>In an exclusive interview with FRANCE 24, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed concern about the "global issue" of Europe's migrant crisis and welcomed the recent measures taken by EU leaders to manage it.</p><br />"We are very concerned about the increasing number of immigrants, of refugees to the European continent, and this has become a global issue, not only on the European continent, but also in southeast Asia and particularly the Andaman Sea," Ban told FRANCE 24's Marc Perelman in an interview in Strasbourg.<br />The EU officially launched a naval operation in the Mediterranean on Monday that will initially be limited to increasing surveillance of human traffickers.<br />"Most refugees are coming to the European continent for a better future. The priority of the United Nations is that all the measures should be rights-based. Their human rights and human dignity and their human lives should be saved, that is the number one priority,” Ban said.<br />"We welcome the comprehensive measures European leaders are now taking... I sincerely hope that this will really help reduce [the strain at] the borders of some particular countries, and this should be a collective responsibility," he added.<br />Ban also discussed the conflicts in Libya and Yemen as well as the ongoing negotiations on Iran's nuclear programme.<br />He expressed hope for a deal between Iran and six world powers by a June 30 deadline.<br /><br />Visit our website:<br />http://www.france24.com<br /><br />Like us on Facebook:<br />https://www.facebook.com/FRANCE24.English<br /><br />Follow us on Twitter:<br />https://twitter.com/France24_en
