On Tuesday 20 June, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni arrives on an official visit to Paris and will meet with French President Emmanuel Macron, Ednews reports citing Euractiv.
This is Meloni's first visit to France. Although she had long been in office, relations between France and Italy during this period have been somewhat tense since the early days.
After the far right's victory in the parliamentary elections in Italy, the Prime Minister of France and then one of the French Ministers noted that France would be "attentive to respect for European values". This statement angered Meloni.
The countries further exchanged harsh statements over the situation of migrants picked up by the non-state rescue ship Ocean Viking; France agreed to accept it due to Italy’s refusal to do so. At the time, France felt that Italy had not fulfilled its rescue obligation. "France deeply regrets that Italy has chosen not to behave like a responsible European state", said French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin. In retaliation, France suspended the relocation of 3,500 refugees who had arrived in Italy.
Migration issues after that more than once fueled the tension: after another critical statement by Darmanin, the Italian Foreign Minister postponed a visit to Paris.
