Between France and Italy there is adhesive, not from today. But in reality the two governments should work together on immigration – because the interests overlap.
Giorgia Meloni and “her far-right government” are “incompetent” to solve the migration problem: “Incompetent”, the French interior minister said in an interview. In Italian it means “impossibility”, a harsh word that has fueled anger in Rome since yesterday.
This was by no means the first crisis between governments in Rome and Paris. Money is often at stake whether Italian or French companies produce gas in Egypt or Libya. Or it is about the terrorists of the Red Brigades, which the French judiciary is absolutely unwilling to hand over.
Domestic politics are at play
Or a detail: Prime Minister Meloni has been in office since October, but has never met President Macron at the Elysée. You obviously don’t like each other and don’t want to do anything about it.
Of course, the government in Paris was liberal and in Rome it was more correct. But when politicians of the same political persuasion ruled both countries, there were differences of opinion.
Purana:
There is an ice age between Emmanuel Macron (left, in conversation) and Georgia Meloni (centre).
EPA/STEPHANIE LECOCQ
When things get tough between France and Italy, it’s usually about real, concrete interests. About migration now: 100,000 refugees and migrants from Tunisia and Libya will migrate by the end of the year. So the government at Rome did not mind that many of the newcomers were speedily going to Switzerland, but above all to France. On the contrary, one is secretly happy about it.
In Paris, however, this is causing a lot of trouble, as this illegal immigration has given the right-wing populist Rassemblement National a run for its money in the polls. The French interior minister’s harsh words were motivated by domestic politics, however, leading to a split with Rome.
The similarity is indeed pointed out
Both countries are expected to be completely overwhelmed if the number of refugees increases further. A European-level solution is needed. There has been a long-standing debate about the distribution of migrants into EU countries or repatriation agreements with African countries.
To achieve that, Rome and Paris must really work together; Together they will have a better chance of doing things. Yes, Italy’s foreign minister’s flight to Paris didn’t even take off yesterday.
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