Giorgia Meloni intervenes in Spain's migrant chaos for political gain
The Italian Prime Minister has harshly criticized Spain's handling of illegal immigration in a move seen as an attempt to consolidate her voter base.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni refuses to lose her own game. Ahead of the upcoming elections next year, and following the rise of a new rival from the right, Meloni is once again hardening her tone on issues of immigration and security.
According to a report published on the "Politico" website, Meloni's government was the first in the European Union to harshly attack the Spanish government following a sudden influx of migrants from Morocco into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta last week. While France and other countries were content with tightening border controls, Italy went further and announced the suspension of the Schengen Agreement on free movement with Madrid. Now, at Italian airports, passengers arriving from Spain are required to stand in a separate line.
Meloni's office clarified that it does not intend to remove the controls at least until August 15, which significantly exacerbated the confrontation with Spain, which responded by imposing its own strict checks on passengers arriving from Italy.
"We will not give up even a millimeter when it comes to illegal immigration," Meloni tweeted on the social network X.
Meanwhile, her coalition partners accused the socialist government in Spain of a complete failure in managing the immigration crisis. The confrontation with Madrid is just the latest sign that the Italian leader is doing everything in her power to ensure the support of her hardline voter base, in the face of the challenge posed by Roberto Vannacci, a former general and member of the European Parliament. Ahead of the elections expected to take place next spring, Vannacci's party, "National Future," is climbing in the polls, overtaking the "League" party — Meloni's coalition partner — and breathing down the neck of "Forza Italia."
While Meloni promised back in the 2022 campaign to stop illegal immigration through a naval blockade — a promise that was never actually implemented, although migrant detention centers were established in Albania — Vannacci demands a much more radical solution: "reverse migration," a plan to encourage migrants to return to their countries of origin. Experts in Italian politics told "Politico" that Meloni's sharp response to the crisis in Ceuta stems solely from internal political calculations and from fear of a leakage of votes from her party, "Brothers of Italy."
Vannacci, whose party is crossing the 7 percent support threshold in the polls, also poses a headache for her on the issue of Ukraine, as he calls for a softer approach towards Moscow and opposes increasing defense spending. It seems that the pressure from the right is already taking its toll and is reshaping the policy of the Italian government.
