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Italy’s Prime Minister Meloni Aligns with UK Labor Leader Starmer on Immigration Issues
In recent statements, Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed strong alignment with her British counterpart, Labour leader Keir Starmer, particularly regarding their mutual focus on tackling illegal immigration and rethinking asylum processing methods. Meloni highlighted the significance of addressing these challenges, which she believes impact the entire European continent, extending beyond EU borders.
Speaking to the Corriere della Sera’s weekly magazine, Meloni characterized her rapport with Starmer, who holds views opposite to her far-right Brothers of Italy party, as “very good.” She mentioned their shared objectives, particularly in the governance of migration and the necessity to combat mass illegal immigration effectively.
Meloni further noted her productive exchanges with notable figures such as Elon Musk, who has publicly critiqued Starmer’s administration. She acknowledged Musk as an “interesting” individual for discussions, addressing the shifting perceptions surrounding him as opinions on his political stance evolve.
Both leaders concurred on increasing efforts against human traffickers, enhancing cooperation among law enforcement, and embracing innovative strategies to manage asylum claims. One such initiative is Italy’s contentious arrangement with Albania, which aims to process asylum applications in a third country while maintaining Italian and European legal oversight. This protocol was designed to facilitate the transportation of individuals intercepted in Italian waters to Albania.
Despite Meloni’s optimism, the ambitious €670 million deal has faced setbacks. Since its implementation in October, the agreement, meant to manage the transportation of 3,000 intercepted individuals each month, has not yielded the expected results due to various legal hurdles. During a meeting in Rome in September, Starmer showed considerable interest in this initiative; however, reports indicate that the designated facilities for asylum seekers, including a detention center in Gjadër, remain unused. Instead, the center has reportedly been occupied by stray dogs tended to by prison staff.
At a December gathering of her party, Atreju, Meloni reaffirmed her commitment to this deal, stating that she would invest her full effort to ensure its success, regardless of the political timeline. Meanwhile, Starmer has pledged financial support to Italy’s immigration initiatives, offering £4 million to assist Meloni’s administration in its efforts against irregular migration. His endorsement of Meloni’s policies, however, has garnered criticism from within his party and various NGOs, including the Refugee Council and Amnesty International, who urged him to steer clear of superficial measures after previous immigration proposals, notably the failed Rwanda scheme.
Since taking office in October 2022, Meloni maintained that she has not made any decisions that she regrets, standing firmly by the strategies her government has pursued in addressing the complex issues surrounding migration and asylum in Italy and Europe.
Source
www.theguardian.com