President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called on Friday March 24 to support Tunisia, which is facing a serious financial crisis, in order to contain the "
migration pressure
" that this country represents for Europe.
"
In Tunisia, the very great political tension, the economic and social crisis which is raging in the absence of an agreement with the International Monetary Fund, (are) very worrying
", declared Emmanuel Macron during a press conference at the from a European summit.
In the very short term, we need to succeed in stopping the migratory flows.
Emmanuel Macron, President of the Republic
This "
leads to a very great destabilization of the country and the region and to increased migratory pressure on Italy and the European Union
", he said, calling for "
acting together
" at European level to help the Tunisia and allow "
control of emigration
".
“
In the very short term, we need to succeed in stopping the migratory flows leaving Tunisia and increasing (this) pressure
”, insisted the French president, specifying that he had spoken about it with the head of the Italian government during a bilateral meeting.
Giorgia Meloni, evoking the fear of a “
migratory wave
”, explained that she had broached the subject during the summit because “
not everyone is perhaps aware of the risks created by the situation in Tunisia
”.
Asked about a possible Italian-French mission to Tunisia with the European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson, she replied: “
Yes, there is a mission at the level of foreign ministers, there are several at the moment who are going in Tunisia
”.
There is a risk of seeing an objectively unprecedented wave of migration unleash.
Giorgia Meloni, President of the Italian Council
“
If we do not tackle these problems adequately, there is a risk of seeing an objectively unprecedented wave of migration unleash
,” said Giorgia Meloni, whose far-right government is following an anti-migrant line.
She also discussed the situation in Tunisia with the European Commissioner for the Economy Paolo Gentiloni, who “
will be going there in the coming days
”.
"
Work at the diplomatic level must be done to convince the two parties, the IMF and the Tunisian government, to conclude an agreement to stabilize the region financially
," she stressed.
Tunisia has been negotiating for several months with the International Monetary Fund for a loan of nearly two billion dollars, but discussions between the two parties seem to have stalled since an agreement in principle announced in mid-October.
The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, for his part warned on Monday that the situation in Tunisia was "
very dangerous
", even mentioning a risk of "
collapse
" of the State likely to "
cause migratory flows towards EU and cause instability in the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region
”.
An analysis described as "
disproportionate
" and rejected by Tunis.
