“We told our Italian friends that we were ready to help them return people to countries with which we have good diplomatic relations,” declared the Minister of the Interior on Tuesday on TF1.
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Returning from Italy, where some 10,000 migrants have arrived in recent days, the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, announced on Tuesday September 19 that “France will not welcome migrants present in Lampedusa”. “France wants a firm position”he explained on the set of the 8 p.m. news on TF1.
“We must distinguish migrants from people who are political refugees”, continued Gérald Darmanin. He noted that “60% of the people who arrived in Lampedusa are French-speaking. There are Ivorians, Senegalese, who have not requested asylum in Europe.” “On the other hand, we told our Italian friends that we were ready to help them return people to countries with which we have good diplomatic relations”he said, citing Ivory Coast and Senegal.
The minister had already displayed a certain firmness since Rome. “Many people come from countries which do not experience political persecution. These people must return to their country and France must help them”he declared. “There is irregular immigration in Europe, in France and Italy, which must be foughtestimated Gérald Darmanin Tuesday evening. It is not by welcoming more people that we are going to dry up a flow which, obviously, affects our integration capacities.”