Deputy Premiers Luigi Di Maio and
Matteo Salvini both played down talk of turmoil within the
government on Thursday following tension about Italy's decision
to take some of the 49 migrants who had been at sea for weeks
after being rescued by NGO-run ships in the Mediterranean.
League leader and Interior Minister Salvini, who has
spearheaded a tough stance that has seen NGO-run migrant-rescue
ships denied access to Italy's ports, had said he was against
receiving any of the asylum seekers.
But at a meeting of senior figures with Premier Giuseppe
Conte late on Wednesday, the executive reached an agreement for
Italy to be among eight European countries to take a share of
the migrants.
Around 10 of the people who were finally allowed to disembark
in Malta on Wednesday will come to Italy and they will be
entrusted to the care of the Waldensian Church at no cost to the
State.
They will be sent to a reception centre at Scicli near Ragusa
in Sicily, sources said.
5-Star Movement (M5S) leader Di Maio said Wednesday's meeting
was "very cordial".
"You always find a solution with Giuseppe and Matteo," he
told Radio Anch'io.
Salvini also said the government was not in crisis.
"I don't leave anything half done and I don't want to cause
any government to collapse," Salvini told RTL radio.
"The government is fine. We have done a lot in six months and
the two government parties have the confidence of 60% of the
Italian people, which is pretty unique".
The government will "go ahead despite all the birds of ill
omen," Salvini said later Thursday.
"We are in the hands of the good God but this government is
going ahead despite all the birds of ill omen," he said on Porta
a Porta talk show.
Asked if it would last the full five years, he said "Yes,
there are so many things to do, I don't want to leave things
half done, we've just started".
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