BERLIN (AP) — Italy's foreign minister says Rome will allow migrants rescued by a European Union naval operation to land over the coming weeks while EU nations figure out how to divide up new arrivals.

Italy has launched a crackdown on migration and is seeking to renegotiate Operation Sophia's mandate to prevent rescued migrants from being brought exclusively to Italy.

Sophia's commander recently ordered participating ships to return to port, but on Monday German officials said a German ship participating in the operation had put out to sea again.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said Monday that, over the next five weeks, EU countries will discuss how people rescued can be distributed in Europe.

His Italian counterpart Enzo Moavero Milanesi said that, in the meantime, Italy will allow rescued migrants to disembark there.