Italy's conservative-led government has worked hard over the past year to reduce illegal immigration, resulting in a 64% drop in the number of illegal immigrants.
“It's not easy. We have worked hard to achieve this goal,” Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani told “Sunday Morning Futures” host Maria Bartiromo.
“We are very happy about this. We are not against legal immigration, but rather against illegal immigration,” he clarified.
“The traffickers are the most important part of crime. They are human traffickers, they are arms traffickers, they are drug traffickers. [belong to] These are the same organizations, but we need to be very strong and take on these organizations, and we are doing that.”
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Giorgia Meloni speaks at a press conference. Giorgia Meloni, leader of the far-right national-conservative Brothers of Italy party, comments on his party's victory in the Italian elections at Parco Principi Hotel on September 25, 2022 in Rome. (Valeria Ferraro/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Tajani said the drop follows financial agreements with Tunisia, Libya and other North African countries, a move that has been criticized by some. Being praised by othersBritish Prime Minister Keir Starmer, a member of the opposition, is one of them.
Last year, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni met with Bartiromo to discuss the political situation in Europe, including the apparent growing influence of the conservative movement, which continues to be part of the political debate.
There, she made an urgent appeal about the human trafficking situation fuelled by illegal migration from North African countries.
“We have to fight against human traffickers,” she said at the time. “It's unbelievable what they're doing. These organizations are getting stronger all the time, and they're using their power and their money to get people to stop trying … [have] “We are against the state. We cannot allow the mafia to decide who can enter our country.”
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Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani discussed foreign policy and other pressing issues on “Sunday Morning Futures.” (Fox News)
Meloni said unstable situations such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war have opened the eyes of many citizens and allowed them to see the differences between the policies of the right and the left.
Commenting on the apparent rightward shift and its effects, Tajani told Bartiromo that Italy's economy was doing better than under the previous prime minister's leadership.
“The Italian economy is on the rise now. We're not very happy, but we're happy because unemployment is going down and stock prices are going up. We have to do more next year. We have to reduce taxes. [lower taxes]”This is important. This is our strategy.”
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