NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said Sunday the alliance was prepared to help out in troubled Libya as it grapples with a migrant crisis but warned there were no military solutions.

Speaking to Italian daily La Repubblica, Stoltenberg said: "NATO is ready to help Libya construct its security institutions".

NATO experts were already "in contact with Libya authorities to see how to assist them better," he added.

"Any support from Italy would be welcome but that is up to the Italian government," he said.

Libya has been gripped by chaos since a NATO-backed uprising toppled and killed dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011, with rival administrations and multiple militias vying for control of the oil-rich country.

The chaos has seen the country become a key departure point for thousands of migrants hoping to reach Europe, with hundreds drowning each year trying to cross the Mediterranean.

Hundreds and thousands of migrants making the perilous journey have arrived in Italy in recent years.

Italy's new populist government has vowed to curb arrivals, banning foreign NGO rescue ships from their ports and appealing to NATO for greater help tackling illegal immigration and human trafficking.

"There are no military solutions to the migrant crisis, but NATO will help to make the problem less serious," said Stoltenberg, adding that NATO deployments in the Aegean Sea "have helped to suppress illegal and dangerous trafficking of human beings."

He said NATO would sign a joint declaration with EU President Donald Tusk and EU Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker to outline their cooperation.

Italy's new government has affirmed its commitment to the alliance despite differences in political policy.

Italy advocates a review of economic sanctions against Russia which NATO believes are necessary.

But Stoltenberg said Italy remained an important member.

"I expect to continue working with Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte and his government," he said.

"Italy has a fundamental role in the future of NATO."

US Navy planning new camps to support immigration crackdown: report
Washington (AFP) June 23, 2018 –

The US Navy plans to build sprawling detention centers for tens of thousands of immigrants on remote bases in support of President Donald Trump's "zero tolerance" policy against unlawful migration, a report said Friday.

According to a draft memo obtained by Time magazine, the navy plans to build "temporary and austere" tent cities to house 25,000 migrants across three abandoned air fields in Alabama, 47,000 people at a facility near San Francisco, and another 47,000 at a training center in southern California.

The document estimates the navy would spend $233 million to run a facility for 25,000 over six-months.

Asked for comment, Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Jamie Davis said: "The Department of Defense is conducting prudent planning and is looking nationwide at DoD installations should DHS (Department of Homeland Security) ask for assistance in housing adult illegal immigrants.

"At this time there has been no request from DHS for DoD support to house illegal migrants."

The fate of 2,300 children wrested from their parents at the US border with Mexico remained unclear Friday two days after Donald Trump ended migrant family separations.

While the US leader bowed to global outrage over the splitting of families, conflicting messages were contributing to a sense of chaos in the handling of the crisis.

But having been forced into a climbdown, Trump swung back into fighting mode — insisting he remained committed to the "zero tolerance" policy that aims to deter the flow of migrants from Central America.

"We must maintain a Strong Southern Border. We cannot allow our Country to be overrun by illegal immigrants as the Democrats tell their phony stories of sadness and grief, hoping it will help them in the elections," he tweeted.

Trump also met at the White House with parents of victims killed by undocumented immigrants.

The parents standing with Trump have been "permanently separated from their loved ones," the president said, "because they were killed by criminal illegal aliens."