Pope Leo XIV urges Italy to remain open to migrants

Pope Leo XIV thanked Italy on Tuesday for its efforts to combat human trafficking, but urged the country to remain open to welcoming and integrating migrants.

The Holy Father made his plea during his meeting with Italian President Sergio Mattarella in the Quirinale Palace in Rome, a rite of passage for every new pope.

Escorted by the presidential horse honour guard into the palace courtyard, Leo thanked Italy especially for its welcome of pilgrims during the 2025 Holy Year, which has seen millions of extra tourists pouring into the Eternal City.

Wearing his formal red cape and brocaded stole, Leo thanked Italy for its “generous assistance” to migrants.

The pope said the country should maintain "its attitude of openness and solidarity."

“At the same time, I wish to emphasise the importance of constructive integration of newcomers into the values and traditions of Italian society, so that the mutual gift realised in this encounter of peoples may truly enrich and benefit all," he said.

This was a reference to Italy's central role in the European debate on migration. The country's proximity to North Africa makes it the preferred destination for smuggling operations setting off from Libya and Tunisia.

The far-right government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has made cracking down on illegal migration a priority, including by sending migrants back home or to detention facilities in Albania and prosecuting alleged smugglers.

Like Pope Francis before him, Leo has positioned himself as a fervent defender of migrants’ rights, most recently in his first encyclical.

"Migrants and refugees do not only represent a problem to be solved, but are brothers and sisters to be welcomed, respected and loved," Leo wrote in the document published last week.

"In every rejected migrant, it is Christ himself who knocks at the door of the community."