Migrant situation not explosive, it has exploded-Tajani
Walls can't stop movement of millions says foreign minister
18 September, 13:29
(ANSA) - ROME, SEP 18 - Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister
Antonio Tajani said Monday that the situation regarding the
arrival of migrants from Africa "is not explosive, it has
already exploded". Speaking to reporters at the Italian
consulate in New York, Tajani said he intended to raise the
issue of migratory pressure from Africa at the 2023 UN General
Assembly. "The are no walls that are capable of halting the
movement of millions and millions of people," he said. "Look at
the history of the Barbarian Invasions - the Roman army, the
most powerful in military history, could not stop them". On
Sunday European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen
visited Lampedusa with Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni after
being invited to the Italian island to see the situation for
herself. Over 127,000 migrants have entered Italy so far this
year, approximately twice as many as in the same period in 2022,
according to interior ministry data. Many of them enter via
Lampedusa, Italy's southernmost island. Meloni has said the
surge in migrant arrivals has put Italy under "unsustainable
pressure". On Sunday von der Leyen presented a 10-point action
plan for Lampedusa, including a possible new EU naval mission in
the Mediterranean. Tajani has said that even the EU is not
capable of addressing the issue on its own and has called for
the involvement of the UN and NATO (ANSA).