Giorgia Meloni kept with Emmanuel Macron his first -and cordial- meeting with a foreign leader, in what seemed like a declaration of intent. Little has happened since then and we can already speak of the first crisis between Italy and France, with immigration as the reason for the dispute.
The context is that Rome rejected the reception of 237 migrants, including 57 children, aboard a humanitarian ship, the ‘Ocean Viking’. This Friday it has docked at the French naval base in Toulon, where her health is evaluated before beginning to determine her destiny “by the accelerated procedure.”
[Meloni exhibe perfil moderado en su visita a Bruselas: “La voz de Italia en Europa será fuerte”]
France has made no secret of its anger with Italy, tightening border controls and suspending “with immediate effect” the European Union’s relocation agreement. For Meloni, this reaction is “incomprehensible” and it does not seem “fair” that Paris insinuates or directly speaks of little Italian solidarity in the EU.
“Something is not working” when what “annoys” is that Italy “is not the only landing port for migrants from the Mediterranean,” Meloni said at a press conference. The same day that “France welcomed 234 people – he continued – 600 people disembarked” in Italy. “The aggressive French reaction is proof that migration in Europe cannot continue as before,” Meloni concluded.
France “will draw consequences”
“I don’t think we have to discuss each time with France, Greece, Spain… The only common solution, and I discussed it with Macron, Germany and the EU, is the defense of external borders, blocking exits, opening centers. We have spent millions of euros to help Turkey. (…) I ask that a European solution be built,” the prime minister explained.
[Giorgia Meloni calma a las voces críticas al rearfirmar el compromiso climático de Italia en la COP27]
The French Minister of the Interior, Gerald Darmaninhas reported that nine European countries (Germany, Portugal, Ireland, Luxembourg, Croatia, Bulgaria, Romania, Malta and Lithuania) have pledged to take in two-thirds of the people who stay, emphasizing “European solidarity”, in contrast with the criticism of Italy for not taking care of these people.
France is going to organize “in the next few days” a meeting with the European Commission and with Germany to “draw the consequences of the Italian attitude” because, as the French government spokesman insisted, Olivier Veran“France wants the answer to be European”.
