Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni returned to Rome full of enthusiasm after inspecting two centers for African asylum seekers in Albania alongside her Albanian counterpart, Edi Rama. The centers, located at the port of Shëngjin and the former military base in Gjadër, are part of a new initiative to address illegal immigration to Italy.
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| Screenshot di Giorgia Meloni in un'intervista per RAI UNO |
During an appearance on Bruno Vespa's popular RAI UNO television program "Porta a Porta," Meloni expressed her belief that Albania could provide a definitive solution to the issue of illegal immigration.
"Based on the protocol with Albania, we have planned to spend €690 million on the two centers established there, which means €134 million per year," Meloni explained. "It's laughable when the opposition claims that this money would be better spent on healthcare. Those illegal immigrants, if managed in Italy, would still be part of our expenses. With the protocol reached with Albania, there's a significant difference. In Italy, when they arrive, we welcome them, but the problem remains unsolved. In Albania, I believe this situation will find a permanent solution."
Meloni also emphasized the psychological effect this arrangement would have on Africans dreaming of reaching Italy or Germany, only to find themselves redirected to Albania if they travel by boat.
"The key issue related to the protocol signed with Albania is that anyone attempting to illegally leave Africa for Italy, aiming to move further into Northern Europe, needs to be informed in advance that they will not land in a European port but in Albania, a non-EU country. This creates a tremendous preventive psychological effect. This is the bet I have placed. Another bet is that if this protocol proves effective, and I am fully convinced it will, it will serve as a model for other EU countries. I am confident that this innovative project designed by Italy will become a structural instrument for the entire EU in dealing with illegal immigration."
According to Meloni, only 7.5% of the cost of maintaining these immigrants in Italy will be spent in Albania.
"Supporters of mass illegal immigration, those in opposition advising us to accept everyone here and fiercely opposing us, understand well what this is about. Now, everyone sees the value of this initiative. It's not true that we are spending more money in Albania than we would in Italy, as the amount is only 7.5% of the cost of maintaining them in Italy. I'm not surprised that the Italian left tries to put obstacles in our way because they have always aimed to prevent us from solving the problem of illegal immigration by obstructing every initiative, agreement with Tunisia, with Egypt, the Kutro decree, and by misusing various judges. Let them continue. Italians voted for me, giving me the task to solve this problem, so I am finding different ways to achieve my goal of stopping the arrival of illegal immigrants. The numbers speak for themselves: in the January-June period this year, we had only 21,769 refugees arrive in Italy, while in the same period in 2023, 52,257 arrived."
Despite Meloni's statements, the opposition in Italy insists that the agreement with Albania is cynical and could cost up to €1 billion.