Italy will closely follow the
commitments on migrants made by European Commission President
Ursula von der Leyen on her visit to Lampedusa Sunday, and
especially a pledge to free up cash for a landmark deal with
Tunisia, Premier Giorgia Meloni said after the cabinet approved
a package on the migrant emergency Monday.
"The government will follow with great attention, step by step,
the commitments that Europe has undertaken with Italy, starting
with the commitment to quickly release the resources provided
for in the Memorandum with Tunisia," she said.
The memorandum signed by Meloni, von der Leyen and Dutch PM
Mark Rutte with President Kais Saied in mid-July provides for a
"strategic and comprehensive partnership" aimed at combatting
irregular migration and boosting economic ties between the bloc
and the North African country, which lies on a major route for
migrants and refugees travelling to Europe.
Meloni stressed: "The presence of President von der Leyen in
Lampedusa yesterday is very important also from a symbolic point
of view.
"The presence of Europe at the borders most exposed to mass
illegal immigration underlines that those of Lampedusa are not
only Italian borders but also European ones."
Lampedusa, Italy's southernmost tip, lies closer to Tunisia than
to Italy.
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