Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin said on Friday that the Europe Union's immigration emergency proposal was "the right way but must involve all countries", adding that "Italy is doing a lot".
"In terms of immigration the road taken by the European Union, it is the right one, but must continue with the involvement of all countries", Cardinal Parolin said at a meeting in Padua, adding that "a humanitarian response is necessary to meet these situations, and in this sense, Italy is doing a lot".
Parolin also said that humanitarian efforts must include engaging on ground level to "eliminate the causes of violence and extreme poverty" in order to "put these countries in a position to not force their citizens to leave".
On Thursday, EU leaders agreed to triple funding for search-and-rescue operations and to review methods to capture and destroy smugglers' boats before they depart.
However, Italy's request for more equal sharing of the burden of coping with the migrants and refugees among EU member States was not satisfied.
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