The French government sought to play down a fresh row with Italy over migration on Friday, saying Paris was not looking to "ostracise" its EU partner and its prime minister, Giorgia Meloni.
Italy's foreign minister Antonio Tajani cancelled a trip to Paris on Thursday over what he termed "unacceptable" comments from French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, who said Meloni was "incapable" of tackling her country's migration crisis.
"There was no desire from the interior minister to ostracise Italy in any way at all," French government spokesman Olivier Véran told the Cnews channel on Friday. "We continue to work with the Italians."
"We have discussions with the Italians – they love politics – but they want to do things their own way, and they want others to let them," he added.
"And that's good because we don't intend to do otherwise."
Darmanin had said earlier that Italy faced a "very serious migration crisis" and he drew parallels between Meloni and French far-right leader Marine Le Pen.
"Madame Meloni, (leader of) a far-right government chosen by friends of Mme Marine Le Pen, is incapable of resolving the migration problems on the back of which she was elected," he told RMC radio on Thursday.
Asked about the arrival of migrants at France's southeastern border with Italy, Darmanin said there was "an influx of migrating people and particularly children".
Paris later sought to ease the tensions, saying it hoped that Tajani's meeting with French counterpart Catherine Colonna scheduled for Thursday evening could be rescheduled "soon".
"I have spoken with my colleague Antonio Tajani on the telephone," Colonna wrote in Italian on Twitter.
"I told him the relationship between Italy and France is based on reciprocal respect," she wrote.
Calm dialogue
The French foreign ministry said that the government "wishes to work with Italy to meet the common challenge of rapidly rising migrant flows" and urged "calm dialogue".
Italian media reports on Friday suggested Rome had been left furious by Darmanin's outburst, with Meloni said to be on the verge of cancelling a planned trip to Paris to meet French President Emmanuel Macron.
In a television interview with Italian media on Thursday, Tajani said Darmanin's remarks were "a stab in the back" and he was waiting for him to "apologise to the prime minister, the government, and Italy".
"This is not the spirit in which common European challenges should be faced", he said.
The French and Italian governments have clashed repeatedly in recent years over the management of their common land border and the admission of humanitarian boats carrying migrants rescued while trying to cross the Mediterranean.
The most recent spike in tensions came last November when Meloni, whose far-right Brothers of Italy party won September elections, refused to allow a charity ship carrying 230 migrants to dock in Italy.
The Ocean Viking ship, run by SOS Méditerranée, was eventually allowed to dock in France, but Paris denounced Rome's "unacceptable" behaviour and suspended plans to receive 3,500 migrants from Italy.
At the time, Meloni denounced France's reaction as "aggressive" and "unjustified".
Relations have since improved, with Macron and Meloni meeting in Brussels in March for talks.
European cooperation
French Transport Minister Clement Beaune, a close ally of Macron and a former Europe minister, was less conciliatory in a separate interview on Friday.
He stressed the political differences between Meloni's right-wing government and Macron's pro-EU centrist cabinet.
"There is not a solution to the migration issue which does not include European cooperation," Beaune told Europe 1 radio.
"And you can see that every time there's an attempt to go it alone, whichever country it is, it doesn't work," he added.
Since the beginning of the year, there has been a surge in the numbers of migrants arriving on Italy's shores, mostly from North Africa.
More than 42,000 people have arrived since 1 January, according to the Italian interior ministry – almost four times the number in the same period in 2022.
French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne announced last month the mobilisation of 150 extra police officers to deal with "increased migration pressure on the Italian border".
(with AFP)
