(see related) Marine Le Pen, the president of France's National Rally (RN) party, "represents the Europe that we want", League leader, Deputy Premier and Transport and Infrastructure Minister Matteo Salvini said on Saturday.
Salvini was speaking at a League youth event at Pontida, the Lombardy town the League considers its spiritual home, ahead of the annual rally it holds there on Sunday. Le Pen has been invited to Pontida for Sunday's meeting.
Salvini also dismissed talk of him trying to take advantage of the emergency regarding migrant-boat landings in Lampedusa to win back some of the support among voters that has been transferred in recent years to his alliance partner Premier Giorgia Meloni, the leader of the rightwing Brothers of Italy (FdI) party.
Instead he said the government was united on how to combat illegal immigration.
'The defence of borders and security is a sacred duty, it is not a whim of the League," he said.
"It is something we are working on in total agreement with the (whole) government.
"The fact that she (Meloni) will be in Lampedusa (with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen) tomorrow and I will welcome Marine Le Pen here to Pontida are both part of the same goal".
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