From Ukraine to the Mediterranean: Italy and the governance of migration

Abstract

ABSTRACT The Russian military invasion of Ukraine of late February 2022 caused the largest displacement of persons since the end of the Second World War, testing the European Union’s and its member states’ resilience. In an unprecedented move, the European Union adopted an exceptional measure, the Directive on Temporary Protection, a provision to cope with crises as old as the first massive inflow the EU had experienced back in 2001 during the Balkan wars. That measure has provided order to the reception of the millions of arrivals and set aside the usual controversies among member states, originating from an incomplete and unbalanced European migration and asylum system. While aligning with the position and the directions of the EU, and thanks to unprecedented bipartisan support for the reception of the Ukrainians displaced, Italy has taken the opportunity provided by the crisis to reiterate the urgency of a permanent and structured European system to cope with massive inflows. The Mediterranean stood in the background, where the resumption of inflows, partly triggered by the consequences of the conflict, challenged the renewed climate of bipartisanship. The objective of the article is to identify (dis)continuities in Italian migration policy under Mario Draghi as the Government reacted to the conflict in Ukraine, and the possible changes that could characterize the new government of Giorgia Meloni.