ASSESSMENTS

When It Comes to EU Migration Policies, Italy Won’t Go Down Without a Fight

Jul 9, 2019 | 09:30 GMT

Migrants sit aboard a Maltese patrol boat after being rescued off the Libyan coast by a German-flagged ship on July 7, 2019.

Migrants rescued by a German-flagged ship sit aboard a Maltese patrol boat on July 7, 2019, en route to Malta after being denied permission to dock in Italy.

(MATTHEW MIRABELLI/AFP/Getty Images)

Highlights

  • The number of migrants reaching the European Union by sea or land has decreased significantly since the peak of the immigration crisis of 2015 — a trend that is likely to continue in 2019.
  • But immigration nonetheless remains at the center of Italian politics, with the country's government pushing for a more equal distribution of migrants across all EU member states.
  • However, such a comprehensive EU reform is unlikely, which will prompt Italy to take matters into its own hands by toughening its immigration rules in the coming months.
  • The Italian government will also be more willing to make unilateral moves to prevent migrants from entering or staying in the country, resulting in renewed disputes with Brussels and other European countries.

Far fewer asylum seekers are now knocking on Europe's door compared with the droves that flooded its borders just a few years ago. But thanks to Italy, the European Union is still grappling with immigration concerns. The Italian government recently threatened to stop registering migrants who arrive in its territory so that they can move to other parts of the Continent -- thereby violating the European Union’s Dublin Regulation, which establishes that migrants have to apply for asylum in the country where they first set foot. But despite facing possible sanctions for doing so, Italy's government is showing no signs of backing down, especially since its tough anti-immigration stance has continued to serve to its right-wing party's benefit at the polls. Thus, immigration will remain a central issue in Rome’s political agenda in the months ahead -- providing fodder for even more diplomatic disputes between Italy and Brussels, as well as other...

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