European Union ministers have approved plans for an unprecedented naval force to fight people smugglers in the Mediterranean.
The operation will involve the deployment of warships and surveillance aircraft off the coast of Libya, the centre of an unfolding humanitarian disaster on Europe's southern shores.
EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said the decision taken in Brussels would "disrupt the business model of smugglers and traffickers networks in Mediterranean".
Some 51,000 migrants have entered Europe by crossing the Mediterranean Sea this year, with 30,500 coming via Italy.
About 1,800 have drowned in the attempt, the UN refugee agency says.
The EU plan, which officials say could be launched in the coming weeks, includes the possible destruction of smugglers' boats before they reach Europe.
However, such a move would require a UN Security Council resolution backing military action.
Earlier, Ms Moghweini said the EU decision would help push the UN into taking action.
The prospect of a ground force in Libya was ruled out by Ms Mogherini.
Political chaos and the rising threat from Islamic State militants make Libya a main launching point for people risking their lives to cross the Mediterranean, often on flimsy rubber dinghies or crowded fishing boats.
Pressure has grown on governments to act after an overcrowded migrant boat sank in the Mediterranean last month, leaving more than 750 dead.
Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Spain have already promised to deploy warships for the mission.
Speaking as he arrived for the talks, British Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said: "The Royal Navy is already saving lives at sea but we need to agree action today to get after the criminal gangs."
Human rights groups have criticised the plan, claiming it will not solve the problem of complex smuggling networks and large numbers of people fleeing war and poverty.
Andrew Stroehlein of Human Rights Watch called it "utter madness".
The mission, to be called EU Navfor Med, will be based in Rome and will be led by Italian Rear Admiral Enrico Credendino, a European diplomat told the AFP news agency.
The plan from Brussels is to take the operation step-by-step, starting by collecting intelligence on the traffickers by using radar, satellite pictures and reconnaissance flights and raiding unflagged boats.
The mission will need the green light from the UN if ships want to enter Libyan waters or capture a boat flying a foreign flag.
A separate proposal to distribute asylum seeker arrivals around EU countries according to quotas is causing deep divisions.
Britain says it will not take part in a quota system, and French Prime Minister Manuel Valls also rejected the quota plan at the weekend.
Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia have also spoken out against it.
