Italy and Denmark join forces against "uncontrolled immigration" and call for repatriation centers

BarcelonaGiorgia Meloni and Mette Frederiksen, two European prime ministers seemingly at political antipodes, are showcasing their common front against "uncontrolled immigration" in the European Union in a joint message released this Monday on social media, in which they call for a tougher stance and advocate for the creation of repatriation centers in third countries. The two leaders emphasize that they have led a strict migratory policy, both in their countries and across Europe, with the argument that "no one can deny that illegal immigration has a negative impact" on European societies: "Increased crime rates, increased pressure on public services, and erosion of public trust."

The message comes at a time of effervescence in the migratory debate following the massive arrival of people from Morocco to Ceuta on July 30, eleven days ago. Although the European Union has sought to stage "strong solidarity" with Spain and the unity of the Twenty-Seven, this episode has caused a diplomatic conflict between Madrid and Rome that has intensified this weekend, after "strong solidarity" with Spain and the unity of the Twenty-Seven, this episode has caused a diplomatic conflict between Madrid and Rome that has intensified this weekend, after the government of Pedro Sánchez introduced controls at ports and airports for passengers from Italy as retaliation for the same measure implemented by Meloni's government hours after the Ceuta crisis.

Italy was the first country to propose excluding Spain from the Schengen Agreement – which allows for the free movement of people – even though neither Ceuta nor Melilla are part of it and even though Spanish and Italian territory do not share a land border. The proposal was well received by several member states, especially those governed by right-wing parties. But it also received the support of Denmark, with a social democratic prime minister. Despite her political party, Frederiksen has for years adopted a tough message against immigration, and now she is taking the opportunity to reinforce it.

In their joint message, Meloni and Frederiksen admit that their collaboration may be surprising because they come from "very different political positions" – Meloni leads the far-right party Brothers of Italy and Frederiksen heads the Danish Social Democratic Party – but they assure that they are united in their "desire to protect Europe". At the same time, they highlight that they are "the only two women heads of government in the EU".

They argue that uncontrolled immigration is detrimental to European societies: "It is particularly serious when illegal migrants, who have no right to stay in our countries, commit violent crimes, engage in drug trafficking, or are responsible for sexual violence," they state. And they add that, "understandably," European citizens "expect action from their politicians." "For too long, ordinary people in particular have paid too high a price for uncontrolled immigration," they assert, arguing that "concrete responses" must be provided and more security and protection guaranteed.

They consider that, for this reason, "more people should be expelled" from Europe and they defend that repatriation centers should be one of the tools to speed up expulsions. "Return centers must be implemented in third countries and other innovative solutions outside of Europe. And we are working hard on it," they state. Meloni's government is trying to transfer to the community bloc its cooperation model with Albania, where a deportation center has been built. Although it was announced as the flagship measure of Italian migration policy, the plan has been blocked by successive court rulings against it, and the center remains practically empty.

Protecting Christian cultural heritage

Meloni and Frederiksen also refer to one of the classic arguments of the most protectionist parties: "We are both proud of Europe's Christian cultural heritage and want to protect it." And they add: "We hope that those who come to our countries and decide to make Europe their home will respect our values and not try to impose on us a way of life that we do not want." And they point out that "this applies to illegal migrants, but also to the millions of foreign citizens who legally live in our countries and throughout Europe."

The two leaders take advantage of the crisis in Spain to focus on a battle horse that favors them internally. In Meloni's case, one can think that the countdown to the general elections of 2027 has already begun, which at the moment seems that she would win again, even though in recent months she has had to face some political defeats that could harm her. In March of this year, citizens rejected the controversial reform of justice promoted by her government, which caused an earthquake in an executive until then stable. And this summer, during the processing of the electoral reform, the differences between the coalition partners have become evident.

In Denmark's case, this move is more surprising, considering that Frederiksen is in the opposite situation: "she only two months ago premiered her third government" and, in this case, with a coalition more inclined to the left than the previous one. Nevertheless, the social democratic prime minister has for years taken a stance on immigration much closer to the far-right than to the left, even though the exposure to uncontrolled immigration in Denmark is much lower than in Italy, Spain, and Greece.