French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin is traveling to Italy this Monday to discuss how to help that country’s government control the border to prevent the avalanche of immigrants from arriving on the Italian island of Lampedusa and to take care of the migrants to be deported quickly. undocumented.
In an interview broadcast on radio on Europe 1 and CNews, Darmanin emphasized that it is about the implementation of the European immigration agreement of last June, which provides for joint measures to reduce the influx of migrants from the southern shore of the Mediterranean, and an examination of the asylum applications of those who reach Europe despite everything at the border.
He reiterated the idea that, on the one hand, France will “help Italy control its border to prevent the arrival of people” and, on the other hand, will detain those who enter clandestinely at the border while their case is examined to determine whether they have the right to the institution. If this is not the case, the goal is to “quickly deport them to their countries,” he added.
“We will only accept them if they respect the asylum rules if they are persecuted. But if it is just irregular immigration, France cannot accept them, nor can other countries,” stressed the minister when asked about the people who arrived recently days after Lampedusa.
Specifically, he pointed out that of the 8,000 to 9,000 who have arrived on this Italian island, “many” are not suffering political persecution and should therefore be expelled.
“We must expel from their countries those who have nothing to do in Europe,” he stressed, after warning that “France is very determined on this issue.”
He also justified the support he now gives to the government of the far-right Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, with whom he has repeatedly had friction in the name of French interests, since many of the migrants from North Africa arrive via Italy and then try to get to France.
The French minister took the opportunity to attack the French far right, which he accused of lacking patriotism for not wanting to vote for the agreement between member countries in the European Parliament.
