The Italian Foreign Minister, Antonio Tajani, believes his country and France “have a duty” to develop closer ties, which he says would be in the interests of both countries.
“We have a duty to strengthen relations with France, it is in Italian interests to have good relations with France and in French interests to have good relations with Italy,” he said at a conference in Rome under the title: “Italy and Europe, the challenges between war and immigration”.
Speaking to an audience at Rome’s Luiss Guido Carli university, Tajani also reiterated what he said was the need for Italy and France to implement the Quirinale Treaty of “Strengthened Bilateral Cooperation” signed in 2021 by former Italian Premier Mario Draghi and French President Emmanuel Macron in the Italian capital.
The treaty’s aims include the need to “promote the convergence of French and Italian positions, as well as the coordination of the two countries in matters of European and foreign policy, security and defence, migration policy, economy, education, research, culture and cross-border cooperation”.
But relations between Italy and France have become strained regarding immigration after Tajani cancelled a planned diplomatic visit to Paris on May 4. That came following remarks by French interior minister, Gérald Darmanin, describing Italy’s Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, as “far-right” and “incapable” of solving migrant problems about which she had been vociferous. Italians were further irritated by Darmanin comparing her unfavourably to French right-wing politician Marine Le Pen, a rival to current France President Emmanuel Macron.
Meloni and Macron subsequently made peace during a bilateral meeting at a G7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan and, on Monday, Tajani sought to play down any animosity, claiming he believed the comments merely related to “internal political events”.
France is a “great interlocutor” of Italy, Tajani said, adding that it has all the “prerequisites” for the strengthening of cooperation with his country. Nonetheless, the Italian added that France “cannot withdraw into itself on matters of national interest”.
Italian concern is based on what, according to Tajani, Rome sees as the growing influence of the far-right and the far-left over the French centrist-leaning government, prompting Paris to take a more defensive position towards Italy’s right-wing government.
“France is worried, Macron and the government are worried about the growth of the far right and the far left, I would not want it to be conditioned by the fear of losing: the fear of losing can make you lose even more,” he said.
Alessandra Bocchi is Associate Editor at Brussels Signal
