On Sunday, Malta decided to allow 425 migrants to disembark, they are believed to have spent more than a month at sea.
In an official statement, the Maltese government claimed that no other European nation was willing to share the burden, despite repeated calls for solidarity.
It stated it was forced to receive the migrants, as part of its international obligations to save the lives of people in distress at sea. Efforts to continue securing a relocation deal was still underway.
It promised to fast-track the asylum process for migrants arriving from countries deemed safe. Those whose asylum applications are refused will be returned to their home countries within days, the government said.
The four boats were thirteen nautical miles east of the Maltese capital, Valletta. They had housed rescued migrants, since the end of April. The Maltese government rented these boats on the 30th of April 30, 7th of May, 22nd of May, and 27th of May as more migrants were rescued in Maltese waters.