Ursula von der Leyen and Giorgia Meloni arrive in Lampedusa amid surge in migrant arrivals
European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni arrived on the island of Lampedusa on Sunday morning, amid growing tensions over the influx of migrants.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni arrived on the island of Lampedusa, which this week saw 8,500 undocumented migrants land on its shores.
The EU chief will visit the port and migrant hotspot in the Imbriacola district, according to Italian media sources.
Von der Leyen and Meloni are expected to hold a joint press conference at 11:20 a.m. CET.
Von der Leyen’s spokesman, Eric Mamer, confirmed on Saturday that she would make the trip at the invitation of Meloni, who promised “extraordinary measures” to deal with an influx of migrants, again calling for a naval blockade of North Africa and arguing that Europe needs a “paradigm” shift to deal with the problems driving migration.
“Italy and Europe obviously cannot accommodate this massive influx of people, especially when these migratory flows are managed by unscrupulous traffickers,” she said.
Our reporters are currently working on this story and will provide updates as more information becomes available.
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