Albania’s parliament has ratified the country’s migration deal with Italy, finally giving the green light for the Balkan country to set up two closed facilities for migrants rescued in Italian territorial waters.

Under the agreement, announced in November, Italy, a member of the EU, will finance these two centers on the Albanian Adriatic coast. Albania, which is not a member of the EU, will thus be able to receive approximately 3,000 people at the same time in these centers. One of the centers will be used to register asylum seekers and the other will house immigrants awaiting a response to their request. The migrants will then either be allowed to enter Italy or be repatriated.

In favor of ratifying the agreement 77 MPs voted, out of the 140 members of the Albanian parliament.

Rome will manage the two centerswhich will be located in a country that does not belong to the European Union, but aspires to join it.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, referring to this agreement on Monday, said that 36,000 migrants will be able to pass each year through these centers in Albania, but the realization of this goal depends on the speed with which the Italian authorities they will be able to process asylum applications.

For the Albanian opposition, the agreement constitutes a renunciation of territorial sovereignty. The right also accuses socialist Edi Rama’s government of endangering “national security”. Deputies of the opposition Democratic Party had appealed against this agreement to the Constitutional Court. However, the latter rejected their appeal last month. Brussels has also announced that the Italian plans do not violate European Union law.

The costs for the construction of the two centers and the necessary infrastructure for their operation, their security and the medical treatment of the asylum seekers will they are 100% covered by the Italian side, according to the Albanian authorities.

The Italian authorities will also be responsible for maintaining order in the centers, with the Albanian police responsible outside them and against “the transfer of migrants from one zone to another”.

The centers will operate under Italian jurisdiction, and are expected to open this spring. Their cost is estimated at 650 to 750 million euros over five years.