Italian premier Giorgia Meloni called for a new, more equal relationship between Europe and the countries of origin and transit of migrants, convening a summit of 20 countries, EU officials and international organizations to curb the flow of illegal immigration, reports Breaking News.
The one-day conference was an initiative by Ms. Meloni, aimed at making Italy a leader in solving the problems affecting the Mediterranean countries.
Chief among them was immigration, as Italy keeps hundreds of new arrivals a day on Europe’s southern border, but also energy, as Europe looks to Africa and the Middle East to permanently replace Russian supplies, reports Breaking News.
Human rights groups see the meeting, which also included countries from North and Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East, as setting a roadmap for the future and expressing concern that it will amount to an anti-immigrant policy that will force Africa to distance itself from Europe.
Ms Meloni said at the opening that Western arrogance may have stood in the way of solving the migrant problem.
“The West too often has given the impression of being more interested in giving lessons rather than lending a hand,” Ms Meloni said. “It is probably this diffidence that has made it difficult to make progress on solutions,” reports Breaking News.
She added: “In an era where so much attention is given to the right to migrate, we are not paying sufficient attention to the right to not be forced to emigrate, to not be forced to flee their own homes, to not be forced to abandon their land and leave family members in search of a new life,” reports Breaking News.
According to the International Organisation for Migration, the number of migrants who have gone missing or died in the Mediterranean has reached 1,900 this year. This brings the total number of missing or deceased migrants since 2014 to 27,675. Additionally, 483 individuals have been reported dead or missing in Africa this year.
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