BERLIN – “It is not the first time that Mario Draghi comes to see me in the chancellery, but it is the first time as prime minister”. In November ten years ago Draghi took over the helm of the ECB and began to regularly visit the “washing machine” as the Berliners ironically call the monumental chancellery overlooking the Spree. Angela Merkel smiles, recalling the long tradition of relations with Draghi, at the beginning of the briefing organized on the sidelines of the interview, by now, between counterparts. But on the most important issue, on the migrant dossier that the Italian Prime Minister wants to discuss at the next EU summit, the Chancellor suggests that it can be addressed later. And that it will be better to converge, in the meantime, on the less controversial points.
Both agree that it is necessary to launch common initiatives on the “external dimension of the EU”, that is to foster agreements with the countries “not only in North Africa, but also in the Sahel area: Mali, Ethiopia, Eritrea”, points out Draghi, that is the areas from which migratory flows often originate. And Italy also supports, in this sense, an agreement with Erdogan that recognizes new funds for Turkey to contain flows from the Middle East. Draghi confirms that the EU Commission will have to play a more active role on this front. But on the subject that has divided Europe for six years, the relocation of migrants, it is useless to expect miracles. It is the Prime Minister himself who admits that on the most controversial issue in Europe due to the rigid refusal of some countries – Visegrad in the first place – to accept quotas of refugees and migrants, it will be necessary to have patience. On the mechanisms of reallocation “we are discussing, the negotiations will take some time”.
On the eve of the Libya Conference scheduled for tomorrow in Berlin, Merkel and Draghi also clarified that the reflection on possible agreements with countries of arrival of migrants will have to include Tripoli. Before negotiating agreements, however, it is necessary to “help these countries and stabilize themselves and find peace”, the prime minister specified. And Merkel wanted to thank Italy precisely for the stabilizing role it is playing in Libya: “Italy has a lot of knowledge and has invested many forces in Libyan development”.
The question intersects with that of the cumbersome presence of Turkey and Russia in Libya. And with Moscow it was Mario Draghi in particular who exalted the harmony with Merkel, always careful to maintain a channel of dialogue with Putin: «Germany and Italy are two countries founded on Europeanism and Atlanticism. And therefore the positions towards the USA, Russia, China and also the states of North Africa are very close positions ». It is clear that a negotiation on Erdogan’s military role in Libya is bound to cross over the negotiation for a second agreement on migrants. And it is clear that Draghi has every interest in keeping the Chinese and Russians at the G20 table of the Italian presidency, which will have to face challenges such as the pandemic or the climate.
Finally, Chancellor Merkel warned of the Delta variant of the coronavirus, also because “we are not yet approaching herd immunity”. And, speaking of the pandemic, Draghi also wanted to pay homage to the generosity shown by the Chancellor in welcoming Italian patients during the acute phase of the infections and in proposing the Recovery Plan for economic reconstruction. And not only because the Conte government had shown timid thanks and Minister Di Maio had preferred to be photographed with Chinese vases and to welcome planes with masks bought from Beijing. The prime minister wished to highlight the “deep and lasting” relationship between the two countries and wanted to remember that Germany “is the second most populous Italian community in the world: one million people. The two manufacturing industries are the largest in Europe and are complementary ”. In short, the differences between the two recorded yesterday are “few”, Merkel also stressed. Aside, he added, on football. But cheering is a faith. And there is no question.
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