French-Italian fight puts a deal helping migrants in peril
NBCNov 25, 2022
France Allows Migrant Boat Barred from Italy to Dock
story
Image copyright: SOS Mediterranean/Reuters [via BBC]
The Facts
France confirmed on Thursday that it will allow the NGO ship Ocean Viking, which is carrying 230 migrants, to dock in the port of Toulon after the Italian administration prohibited the boat from docking in the nation.
French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin criticized Italy's decision and denounced the "unacceptable behaviour [sic]" he says the Italian government led by Georgia Meloni, elected last month on a pledge to tighten border control, has displayed.
The Spin
Left narrative
Italy's new far-right administration is clearly failing to adhere to international law and is deliberately prompting conflict within the EU to try and undermine the bloc, which it's ideologically opposed to. France is right; Meloni's officials are ignoring an unequivocal legal and moral obligation.
Right narrative
Macron cannot fix this migrant crisis, the routes of which are causally intertwined with failings throughout the EU bloc and its immigration system. Despite the passive siding of many EU nations with the NGO vessels, France is just as guilty of trying to pass illegal migrants onto other nations. This issue will only be solved when the EU collectively admits its concerns over border security and seeks reform.
