The Memorandum of Understanding between Italy and the Government of National Accord of Libya was renewed for an additional three years yesterday. According to the non-governmental organization ActionAid, "the agreement - which has never been ratified by Parliament and was conceived as an extension of the first Treaty of Friendship between the two countries signed in 2008 by the Berlusconi government - has as its objective the strengthening of cooperation in order to increase the North African country's capacity to halt migration flows towards the European Union." "Italy commits to providing the Libyan authorities in charge of sea and land border control with the means, equipment, technical support, and training necessary to strengthen their ability to manage, stop, and reject migrants, especially those coming towards the Italian shores. Italy has budgeted 124 million euros in recent years for the procurement of naval and land vehicles, engines, satellite devices, training courses, and the efficiency restoration of vessels.” What is the balance sheet? According to Action Aid, tragic. Between 2017 and 2022, 100,000 migrants were intercepted and returned to Libya, many of them were kept in detention institutions controlled by the numerous militias fighting in the country, where they were subjected to kidnapping, torture, and brutality. The mortality rate at sea then almost doubled, with a peak in 2019, when one in ten migrants who "took to the sea" drowned or ended up missing. According to figures from the International Organization for Migration, there have been about 14,000 deaths or disappearances in the Central Mediterranean since 2016.