French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said he would visit Rome on Monday to discuss migration, after a week of mass arrivals on the Italian island of Lampedusa drew a European response.
France wants to “help Italy to secure its borders” as one of the European Union’s main countries of arrival for migrants crossing from North Africa, Darmanin told broadcaster Europe1 when he announced the trip for later in the day.
Darmanin’s office said he would meet his Italian counterpart, Matteo Piantedosi.
Some 8,500 people arrived on Lampedusa on 199 boats between Monday and Wednesday last week, according to figures from United Nations body the International Organization for Migration, prompting European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen to travel there Sunday to announce an emergency action plan.
