Domestic politics, the need for a European Union migration policy and bilateral ties were the focus of talks in Rome on Wednesday between deputy parliament speaker Maria Edera Spadoni and France's ambassador Christian Masset.
Spadoni and Masset's "fruitful" meeting also covered a decree to combat money-laundering, the fight against corruption and organised crime, according to an Italian parliament statement citing comments by Spadoni to reporters on the sidelines of the talks.
"I underlined the need to strengthen bilateral relations between our two countries, putting special emphasis on migration issues," Spadoni said, according to the statement.
A migration accord reached by France, Germany, Italy and Malta at a mini-summit in Valletta in September had led to "an effective redistribution of migrants rescued at sea," Spadoni added.
"I emphasised the importance of the Malta agreement...and reiterated the need for greater EU unity on this issue...I also recalled that Italy has proposed changes to the migration accord with Libya, especially to safeguard the human rights of migrants held in detention centres."
Under the February 2017 memorandum of understanding, the Italian government and the EU have given the Libyan coastguard boats, training and other assistance, and Libyan military and border control forces have pulled back tens of thousands of refugees and migrants hoping to reach Europe by boat.
