Piantedosi confirms the suspension of Schengen. And Meloni (anti-Vannacci) reiterates her defence of the borders:

This time, Giorgia Meloni has decided not to appear directly. But the message is clear: “Defence of our borders. Let’s press ahead with deportations”. It is around 2.20 pm: the Prime Minister posts a video on her social media – “she’s trying to copy Trump”, says Elly Schlein. The video shows police officers carrying out deportation procedures, escorting handcuffed migrants onto aeroplanes. In response to Vannacci’s call for remigration, Palazzo Chigi has put forward its own solution. The Prime Minister’s timing does not seem coincidental, as Matteo Piantedosi is due to appear before the Schengen Committee just a few minutes later. On the one hand, there is the clash with Spain over border controls following the Ceuta incident. On the other, there is Germany, the Dublin cases and the Somali migrant whom Berlin intends to send back to Italy next week. “We will not accept this.” It is along this path that the Home Secretary is navigating, amidst European regulations and agreements. One diplomatic crisis to contain and another to avert. There are also paradoxes and contradictions. Piantedosi stands firm: “The suspension of Schengen will not be reviewed before 15 August and, in any case, only once security risks to Italy have been completely ruled out.” It is not, he explains, a political decision against “a sister country”, but is due to “potential terrorist infiltration”.

No chains are visible, the handcuffs are obscured, but Meloni’s video is, in some ways, somewhat reminiscent of Trump’s immigration-themed videos. For the Prime Minister, it is a way of making it clear what the government’s policy is, and will be, from now until the end of the parliamentary term: “Deportation operations for irregular migrants are continuing. Border defence, security, compliance with the rules: we will continue straight down this path”. Earlier that morning, it was Piantedosi himself who announced the repatriation of 17 foreign nationals. But the issues discussed at yesterday’s hearing were different. The suspension of the Schengen Agreement with Spain, which will remain in place at least until mid-August (but may last until the end of the month). There are fears of new waves of migrants arriving in Ceuta by that date. According to the minister, the networks of traffickers must not be underestimated, whilst in the Spanish outpost – where “72,000 third-country nationals” have arrived – there are still 6,000 people and 1,300 minors who cannot be repatriated. Furthermore, and above all, there is a risk of terrorism, adds Piantedosi, and “every irregular entry is a vulnerability for the whole of Europe”. Certain areas of Morocco are “historically subject to recruitment and radicalisation by jihadists”. In short, these are exclusively security issues, according to the Interior Ministry, which rejects accusations of political exploitation levelled by the opposition: “There is no ideological battle against Sánchez”. Even so, the decision to step up border controls has indeed seemed rather too harsh – a political move to appease the right – particularly given that Italy is a country of first arrival. Meanwhile, Spain has reported that over 3,000 travellers from Italy have been checked. These are the effects of what the Italian Foreign Ministry described as “retaliation” in recent days. As for the checks carried out in Italy, according to the Minister of the Interior, 21 people have been turned away – six of whom are of Moroccan origin (though it is by no means certain that they came from Ceuta) – and three arrests have been made.

During the hearing, which lasted over two hours, Piantedosi rattled off figures, trying to keep the discussion almost entirely on a technical level. He highlighted the decline in arrivals, also mentioned Salvini, and recalled the work done in Europe in an attempt to change the approach to migration, as well as cooperation with other countries, starting with Denmark under the (not-so-left-wing) socialist Mette Frederiksen. But the issue is now more political than ever, with General Vannacci’s return to Italy looming large and Matteo Salvini in freefall. And with the opposition on the offensive, in what is now an election-like atmosphere for everyone: whilst the PD secretary claims that “Meloni is chasing after Vannacci”, Riccardo Magi says that “Piantedosi is embarrassing; he’s grasping at straws”. Statements coming from the Five Star Movement are along the same lines. This will continue for months.

The next case – a potential crisis to be avoided, which has in fact been unfolding for a few days now – does not concern Sánchez, the Spanish Prime Minister favoured by the left. Rather, it concerns Friedrich Merz’s Germany, with whom Rome has sought to find common ground on various issues. On Wednesday, Berlin intends to send Abdirisaq Warsam, the Somali national previously described as a ‘zero migrant’, back to Rome. She is a Dublin case, who, according to the regulations, should return to the country where she first arrived: Italy. Piantedosi assures us that “we have adopted a bilateral memorandum of understanding to clear the backlog of Dublin cases until the new Pact comes into force”. But what will the government do next week? Piantedosi answers again. He stands his ground, politically. “I have already written to my German counterpart stating that we do not accept this.” The government wants to focus on forms of compensation “for the hundreds, thousands of migrants brought to us by German-flagged NGOs. Since the start of the year, there have been 2,200. Since 12 June, when the new Pact came into force, there have been more than 500.” At this very moment, the Humanity 1 – a German-flagged vessel – is at sea, heading for Ravenna following a rescue operation. This too will be taken into account in the talks with Berlin. Contacts are ongoing, according to the Interior Ministry: as for the Somali woman, a solution, an agreement, will be found. It could be a rejection of the German request or, indeed, a form of compensation; we shall see. These are technicalities which, for the Interior Ministry, will not alter the political substance. Or at least that is the hope. The aim now is to avert another crisis and dispel the spectre of Vannacci. But it is by no means certain that Palazzo Chigi will succeed.