Immigration and Foreign Policy. Italy’s domestic-international linkage in the management of mass human movement

Especially since the outbreak of the 2014-2015 so-called ‘migration crisis’, immigration policy has come to be frequently regarded as part of Italy’s foreign policy. Although the management of inbound population movements clearly comprises a relevant external dimension, the relations between immigration and foreign policy are less plain than might appear at first sight. Based on this assumption, the paper examines the domestic-international nexus in Italy’s immigration policy, the association of the latter with foreign policy, and how this process is connected to Italy’s participation in the migration and asylum policy system of the European Union (EU). In particular, the article examines the role played by Interior Ministers in bridging the domestic-international divide typical of this policy area, as well as how the country’s participation in the EU migration policy system has backed up this process.