Italian Prime Minister: Draghi criticizes EU for dealing with refugees from Afghanistan

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Mario Draghi: "How can you?"

Photo: Mauro Scrobogna / POOL / EPA

Italy's Prime Minister Mario Draghi has criticized the behavior of some EU countries when accepting Afghan refugees.

The rescue of Afghans has once again shown the poverty of the EU when it comes to migration, said the former head of the European Central Bank (ECB) at a press conference in Rome.

According to Draghi, Afghanistan is a global problem.

The EU, which is united behind so many principles, does not manage to tackle that.

"It's a thorn in the Union's existence," Draghi continued.

There are countries which to this day say, despite the attacks and the latest tragedy in Afghanistan: We do not want Afghan refugees.

"How can you?" Asked the 73-year-old.

In the evening he wanted to talk to French President Emmanuel Macron in Marseille about Afghanistan.

Draghi did not name any states he was referring to in his criticism.

Most recently, the government in Austria spoke out against accepting Afghan refugees.

Instead, she wants to rely on local help.

In Italy, the issue of refugees and migration has been a political controversy for years.

Many people try to reach Italy and thus the EU on their flight from the coasts of North Africa.

The Mediterranean country has long been asking the EU to adjust the redistribution of migrants and refugees within the community.

Draghi is internationally known as the »euro savior« because he was able to stabilize the common currency during the euro crisis at the head of the central bank ECB in 2012, also through words of power and a policy of easy money.

asa / dpa