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Meloni Urges Tougher EU Border Defense to Save Schengen Zone
(MENAFN) Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called Monday for stronger defense of the European Union's external borders as the only way to preserve the Schengen area, according to a state-run news agency.
"I remain firmly convinced that the Schengen area can be preserved in the best possible way only if the Union's external borders are defended, only if all member states continue to do their part in the fight against traffickers and against mass illegal immigration," Meloni said during a joint news briefing in Rome with her Belgian counterpart, Bart De Wever.
She said the two leaders had discussed migration flow management "after a summer that, as you have seen, was very eventful, once again raising the question of Europe's ability to respond on this matter and to respond to crises."
Meloni also pressed for a more effective interpretation and implementation of international conventions. She said the discussion with De Wever also touched on how international crises are affecting economic and social systems, and argued that competitiveness and energy costs should be taken up at the next European Council summit.
"The impact of the situation in Hormuz on the cost of fuel, fertilizers and raw materials is there for all to see, as is the extent to which all this is weighing on us," Meloni said.
De Wever, for his part, reiterated the need for Europe to become strong "in an increasingly complex world." He said a common defense framework could be built, while also calling for better management of migration and asylum.
The remarks came after roughly 72,000 people crossed irregularly from Morocco into Ceuta on July 30-31, according to the Spanish government's official estimate — an unprecedented surge that briefly brought a number of migrants nearly equal to the enclave's total population.
Government estimates suggest around 5,000 migrants who arrived during the mass crossing remain in Ceuta, a small Spanish enclave with a population of about 80,000.
The crisis has drawn sharp criticism of Madrid from other European governments. A group of 22 EU countries signed an open letter arguing that Spain's relatively open migration policies had acted as a "pull factor."
"I remain firmly convinced that the Schengen area can be preserved in the best possible way only if the Union's external borders are defended, only if all member states continue to do their part in the fight against traffickers and against mass illegal immigration," Meloni said during a joint news briefing in Rome with her Belgian counterpart, Bart De Wever.
She said the two leaders had discussed migration flow management "after a summer that, as you have seen, was very eventful, once again raising the question of Europe's ability to respond on this matter and to respond to crises."
Meloni also pressed for a more effective interpretation and implementation of international conventions. She said the discussion with De Wever also touched on how international crises are affecting economic and social systems, and argued that competitiveness and energy costs should be taken up at the next European Council summit.
"The impact of the situation in Hormuz on the cost of fuel, fertilizers and raw materials is there for all to see, as is the extent to which all this is weighing on us," Meloni said.
De Wever, for his part, reiterated the need for Europe to become strong "in an increasingly complex world." He said a common defense framework could be built, while also calling for better management of migration and asylum.
The remarks came after roughly 72,000 people crossed irregularly from Morocco into Ceuta on July 30-31, according to the Spanish government's official estimate — an unprecedented surge that briefly brought a number of migrants nearly equal to the enclave's total population.
Government estimates suggest around 5,000 migrants who arrived during the mass crossing remain in Ceuta, a small Spanish enclave with a population of about 80,000.
The crisis has drawn sharp criticism of Madrid from other European governments. A group of 22 EU countries signed an open letter arguing that Spain's relatively open migration policies had acted as a "pull factor."
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