Europe must protect external borders amid migration crisis, says Meloni

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said Friday that the migration crisis in Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta demonstrates the need for Europe to protect its external borders.

"The vast majority of European nations share the position Italy has expressed in recent days: that Europe's priority is to protect its external borders from uncontrolled immigration, exclude any risk of security and terrorism and defend the freedom of movement that is the foundation of the Schengen system," she told Italian financial newspaper Milano Finanza.

She said the "serious migration crisis" in Ceuta and the possibility of another influx on Saturday required Italy to remain "extremely vigilant" and take all necessary measures.

Italy recently introduced temporary air and sea border controls with Spain following the arrival of more than 70,000 migrants in Ceuta in late July.

Madrid has criticized the Italian measure, noting that Ceuta is outside the Schengen area, meaning migrants arriving there cannot freely travel onward to other European countries. It also accused Rome of using the issue for domestic political purposes.

Spain, in turn, imposed similar border controls on travelers from Italy.

- Rising energy costs

Meloni also addressed rising energy costs, saying her government would allocate €14 billion ($16.1 billion) in additional resources over the next two years to ease the financial burden on households and businesses.

She reaffirmed her government's commitment to nuclear energy, describing it as "the real solution" for improving Italy's energy security and achieving substantially lower costs over the medium and long term.

"The Italian economy is holding up well, and the data for the first two quarters of 2026 are encouraging," she added.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects the Italian economy to grow 0.5% in both 2026 and 2027, according to its July World Economic Outlook.

Meloni also said Italy's budget deficit had declined from 8.1% of gross domestic product when her government took office to 3.1%, while spending on health care, welfare and public-sector contracts had increased.