The relationships between France and Italy on taking in migrants rescued from distress at sea are anything but normalized. And now another cooldown is looming, at least to stick to the question-and-answer show on the eve of the Alicante summit. The debate was sparked by sources from the Elysée, who answered a question about relations with the government of Giorgia Meloni after the fall Ocean Viking, they declared: “To be specific, today the question of the application of the law, which we shared with the Italian authorities last month, has not been resolved”. And again: “In any case, up to this point we have not had any changes in the position of the Italian authorities on the application of the Law of the flag state. We believe the law invokes the primary responsibility of the Sar zone states,” they added. Speaking of a new meeting between Emmanuel Macron and Giorgia Melonifrom the Elysee have denied the possibility of a bilateral summit Alicante. “As far as we know, Ms. Meloni continues to seek an appointment for her visit Paris who she promised to work for after last month’s Ocean Viking incident,” the same sources added. Emphasizing that in the Elysée they “waiting for a confirmationin any case, that you suggest dates to which you can come Paris. Obviously, this does not prevent the development of contacts on the margins of all summits and events where they meet (with Macron, ed.), therefore obviously (the recent summit in Tirana, ed.) and Alicante this week and of course the European Council, which will be the first European Council for Meloninext week, with very important issues for all of us and especially for Italy”.
The reaction of the Palazzo Chigi – Statements that received a flat rejection Palazzo Chigiwith Presidency sources divulging that the Prime Minister “has not hired any Obligation to visit Parisand none came from the Elysée either official invitation‘, emphasizing that invitations of this type ‘they are not made in the press“. A glacial statement, however not official, only published by sources in the Palazzo Chigi. Exactly how to speak for Paris are only sources of Elysium. In any case, from the transalpine presidency, they have tried to bring the issue of rescuing migrants into the broader field of relations the European Union: “We work with the third countries addressing the issue much broader, ie not just in between France and Italyas happened with instead the Ocean Viking episodeif a certain number of third countries, and Europeans were also not involved in the discussion. We focused on one French-Italian discussion on the other hand, it is obviously a much broader discussion,” the President’s sources reason in Paris, welcoming the progress made compared to last month, particularly with the extraordinary meeting of EU interior ministers convened after Ocean Viking housing, on November 25, when “it was clear that this was a European issue. Of course, the negotiation was not just focused on that Mediterranean Sea- and arrivals from the sea, the migration problem It is of course much broader, but it is very important that all European countries feel that they belong responsibility and participate constructively in the discussion”.
The Alicante summit: the agenda – However, apart from bilateral agreements and press invitations to Paris, both Meloni and Macron will be in Alicante from Friday to attend the summit Euro-Mediterranean (Eu Med-9), hosted by Spain this year, bringing together not only the hosts, Italy and France, but also PortugalGreece, MaltaCyprus, Slovenia and Croatia. The summit, originally scheduled for late September and postponed for reasons covid of the Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchezfocuses on issues of interest to the countries of southern Europe and the Mediterranean Sea-starting with the energy crisis and the impact of the war in Ukraine on the economies, also in sight of the European Council next week at Brussels. It is possible that the problem of migrants, which is not one of the most important on the table, can also be addressed. On the sidelines of the summit, from which a joint declaration of the 9 countries is expected in the evening, the Italian Prime Minister could have an opportunity for a first informal exchange Sanchez while, as mentioned, bilateral agreements with Emmanuel Macron are not foreseen, as also confirmed by the Elysée. The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyenand the President of the European Council, Karl Michaelwho will take part in an initiative with Sanchez, Macron and the Portuguese Antonio Costa on the underwater energy link between Barcelona and Marseille, the H2Med project, before the official opening of the works – scheduled for midday.