Franco-Italian friendship is stronger
than disagreements, French President Emmanuel Macron told
Premier Giorgia Meloni in Paris Tuesday referring to a string of
spats mainly over migrant issues.
Evoking the signing of the Quirinale Treaty that sealed
bilateral friendship, Macron hailed the "links between our
societies, our economies, our universities, our artists, which
keep this unique rapport alive every day".
He said "it is this friendship that interests me above all,
Madame Premier, which enables us to go through controversy, and
disagreements, but always in a framework that is respectful
because it is part of a history that is greater and deeper than
us".
In the most recent spat between the two countries, French
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said that Meloni is incapable
of resolving Italy's migration problems.
He characterised Meloni as a far-right leader unable to solve
the migrant problems she had campaigned on when she scored a
crushing general election win in September.
Foreign Minister and Deputy Premier Antonio Tajani cancelled a
trip to Paris to meet with his French counterpart in protest.
That followed a November row over a migrant rescue ship that
ended up in France after Italy refused it entry.
Then, Stephane Sejourne , the secretary general of Macron's
Renaissance party, was recently quoted by daily newspaper Le
Figaro as calling Meloni's migration policies "inhuman" and
"incompetent".
He was quoted as saying "Meloni does lots of rabble-rousing on
illegal immigration: her policies are unjust, inhuman and
ineffective".
Meloni said the statements did not affect bilateral ties as they
were meant for internal consumption.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA
