Italy's Meloni vows to continue controversial Albania migrant policy

Italy's right-wing government under Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is intent on maintaining its controversial reception centres for migrants in Albania despite several legal defeats.

In a statement following a meeting on Monday between Meloni and several ministers, the government reaffirmed its "firm intention" to continue working on "so-called 'innovative solutions' to the migration phenomenon."

Italian courts have twice thwarted Meloni's policy to have asylum applications from migrants crossing the Mediterranean decided in Albania.

Judges initially justified their rejection of the measure on the basis that the migrants - who were sent to Albania after being picked up in the Mediterranean by Italian ships - were not from safe countries.

Meloni then responded by issue a decree with a list of 19 countries that were declared to be safe.

The Supreme Court last week ruled that judges cannot overrule the government's policy on the categorization of certain countries as safe, although they can challenge the decision on a case-by-case basis.