I continue attempts to thaw between Italy and France after the repeated tensions of recent months, the last of which occurred just two weeks ago, when Macron's party boss, Stéphane Séjourné, had defined the Meloni government's policy on migrants as "unjust, inhuman and ineffective". A few days earlier another attack had come from the French Interior Minister, Gérald Darmanin, according to whom Giorgia Meloni it is “incapable of solving Italy's migratory problems”. Precisely because of those words, the Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Antonio Tajani, he had decided to cancel a bilateral agreement with his French colleague Catherine Colonna.
Meeting in Rome between Tajani and Colonna
However, the meeting was held today at the Farnesina, with the French minister having arrived in Rome, where she was ambassador in the past, to shake hands with her counterpart: "Sometimes we may have had different positions – Tajani told Colonna -, but it is important to have a constructive dialogue between us to enhance the many common interests and develop an indispensable joint action in the face of the main international challenges, starting with migration. A dialogue that must take place through the appropriate channels, such as those envisaged by the Quirinale Treaty".
In a tweet, the French minister thanked Tajani "for the warm welcome". “Confident exchangesi on Ukraine, Tunisia, migration, European defense in particular – he wrote -. Franco-Italian cooperation is essential for progress. Let's move forward together!"
Bilateral issues
The meeting with Catherine Colonna “was very positive“, the Foreign Minister said during the hearing of the joint commissions. "We discussed immigration, the situation in Africa starting from Tunisia and Libya, Sudan", and for a "joint action on the continent". There was also talk of a “Balkan route, of Ukraine, on the issue of
At the beginning of the hearing in the joint commissions on the results of the EU Council, Tajani reported that the French Foreign Minister also discussed the patent court. “There is an agreement, even in France, that it can also be based in Milan”, he highlighted. During the interview, the two would also have addressed the issue of former red terrorists in France. In March, the French Cassation confirmed the refusal by the French justice to extradite the 10 ex Br to Italy. "I had to recall yesterday's vote by the parliament of the Republic," said Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, referring to the request the government to support the victims' families in their appeal to the European Court of Human Rights "to obtain justice". However, Tajani recalled that Macron had expressed himself in favor of Italy, but the French judiciary decided otherwise.
The two ministers then reviewed the main dossiers of common interest, starting with the management of migration flows. "Italy is the country most exposed to the growing migratory pressure in the Mediterranean" recalled the deputy premier, noting how "in the first months of 2023 this pressure recorded an increase of more than +160% compared to the period of 2022". It is now "imperative to develop a modern and efficient European migration and asylum system, which fully integrates the demands of Italy and other frontline Mediterranean Member States through a better balance between solidarity and fair sharing of responsibility".
