French Interior Gerald Darmanin’s statement that Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni did not have the capacity to deal with the immigration problem caused a crisis between the two countries.
In a statement on French radio RMC, Darmanin stated that a record number of irregular migrants crossed to Italy via the Mediterranean due to the political crisis in Tunisia.
“The far-right Ms. Meloni and her government, elected by friends of Ms. Le Pen (French far-right politician Marine Le Pen), and her government, are not capable of solving the immigration problem they were chosen to deal with.” Darmanin said that an influx of immigrants, especially minors, has begun in the south of his country.
Darmanin stated that contrary to Meloni’s election promises, the influx of immigrants to the country has increased.
REACTION FROM ITALY
French Minister Darmanin’s words aroused great reaction in Italy.
Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Antonio Tajani shared on his Twitter account, “I will not go to Paris for our anticipated meeting with the French Minister of Foreign Affairs (Catherine) Colonna. The words made by Minister Darmanin against our government and Italy are unacceptable. That’s not the spirit needed to tackle Europe’s shared challenges.” used the phrases.
Many social media users also shared support comments after Tajani’s message.
The relations between Italy and France had been strained before, due to the fact that Italy did not open its ports to the ships of the non-governmental organization that rescued immigrants, especially regarding irregular migration.
Ocean Viking, who had been waiting for approval for weeks to take refuge in a port in Italy, was rejected by the right-wing coalition government led by the newly appointed Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and the French administration announced in November 2022 that they would accept the ship by issuing a special status with the decision of the Council of Ministers.
French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin accused the Italian authorities of not acting humanely, saying that Paris was acting more humanely than Rome “by accepting”.
Darmanin underlined that since the ship first entered the territorial waters of Italy through the Mediterranean, this country had to accept immigrants, and stated that other European countries, including France and Germany, conveyed to the Roman authorities to take some of the immigrants from Italy, but they received a refusal.
Stating that Italy did not accept the ship because of the concern that “the sick will stay with them”, the French Minister stated that his country would hold a meeting with the EU Commission and Germany in the coming days in order to respect international law and to discuss Italy’s attitude.
Darmanin stated that France had suspended the reception of 3,500 immigrants from Italy within the framework of its migrant distribution program, and called on other EU countries to stop the resettlement program they had with Italy.
Italian Foreign Minister Tajani also reacted to France by evaluating Darmanin’s statements as disproportionate.
THE PROBLEM OF IRREGULAR MIGRATION IN THE MEDITERRANEAN
The region of the Mediterranean between Italy, Malta and Libya has come to the fore in recent years as one of the irregular migration routes frequently used in the transition from Africa to Europe. Migrants who are able to cross the Mediterranean or are rescued are usually in Italy where they first set foot in Europe.
Every year, many immigrants die while trying to cross into Europe due to the boat capsizing or the lack of air and water due to the overcrowding on the boats. (AA)