Austria to send troops and armoured vehicles to border with Italy to block migrants, by Nick Squires.

Austria has deployed armoured vehicles close to its border with Italy and will send up to 750 soldiers to block any migrants trying to head north, the government announced.

The move reflects deep concern in Vienna and elsewhere in Europe over the huge number of asylum seekers who continue to cross the Mediterranean from Libya – so far this year more than 85,000 have been rescued and brought to Italy….

With France and Switzerland closing their borders to migrants since last year, the tens of thousands in Italy have nowhere to go. …

Italy says it can no longer be expected to deal single-handedly with the vast number of asylum seekers, most of them economic migrants, streaming across the Mediterranean.