Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni have issued a joint message against uncontrolled immigration in Europe. On Tuesday, DR examined how the two former political opposites became close allies.
Danish public broadcaster DR reported on August 11 on the partnership between the two leaders. The piece traced how Mette Frederiksen, once on the left wing of the Social Democrats, and Meloni, who entered politics through the youth wing of the post-war MSI party, converged on migration.
Frederiksen described the relationship in a Radio4 podcast, according to DR. She said Russia’s war against Ukraine and other geopolitical challenges had created close ties among European leaders, and that trust was needed to find answers. She recounted her first meeting with Meloni alongside her husband, Bo Tengberg.
The joint message itself was published by Meloni on Monday, August 10, as reported by Euronews. Per that report, the two leaders said they do not accept uncontrolled immigration, called for return hubs in third countries, and urged protection of Europe’s Christian cultural heritage.
Euractiv noted that the statement was shared in Italian and Danish, and that it stressed migrants respecting European values. Meloni’s official social media post said the two shared reflections on Europe’s future, citizen security, and defending the European way of life.
Politico linked the message to the Ceuta crisis. The same report said Denmark and Italy had sent a joint letter to the European Commission demanding immediate action at the EU‘s external borders. CPH Post reported that Frederiksen used the joint statement to defend her position on Ceuta.
Alberte Bové Rud, postdoc at the Danish Institute in Rome, told DR that migration policy in particular unites the two. She said their partnership is defined by a shared ambition to tighten EU migration policy, including changing international conventions from within and establishing reception and departure centers outside the EU.
DR’s Europe correspondent, Anna Gaarslev, said the alliance makes it harder for opponents to label Meloni a fascist. She noted that Italy’s largest opposition party, Partito Democratico, belongs to the social democratic family. Gaarslev added that Meloni faces pressure on illegal migration from Roberto Vannacci and his party Futuro Nazionale.
According to Gaarslev, Italy under Meloni has legalized well over 500,000 migrants because of labor shortages, a point the Italian government does not highlight. DR’s political analyst, Rikke Gjøl Mansø, said Frederiksen needs a strong ally with tightening symbolism in the Danish immigration debate.
Mansø said the Social Democrats are under renewed pressure from Dansk Folkeparti, led by Morten Messerschmidt. She said the timing of the joint message was unlikely to be coincidental. The Folketing has been convened on Wednesday for an emergency debate on the migrant flow from Morocco into Ceuta.
