Europe can't stop migration, says Italian PM

Rome, Jan 11 (IANS/AKI) European nations cannot stop migration and need to manage the phenomenon through cooperation, Italy's Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni said on Thursday.

He also said that major results were achieved last year in the fight against human trafficking, and urged Europe to "keeping moving forwards in this direction".

"I believe the only thing we can't say or promise to European citizens is that we can end the major migrant influxes or eliminate them with who knows which magic formula.

"The problem is managing the problem, and doing so together, and in this respect the cooperation between France and Italy seems to me to be a model," Gentiloni said at a press conference after a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Prime Minister's office here.

European nations must "assume the responsibility" for managing migrant flows " in an organised way" and for removing these from the grip of criminal gangs, he stressed.

"We obtained important results in 2017 in the fight against human trafficking. We are proud of this and believe that European policies should keep moving forwards in this direction," he said.

--IANS/AKI

vd