Italy and Poland "on the same wavelength". Giorgia Meloni and Mateusz Morawiecki met in Warsaw

Polish PM hosted her Italian counterpart in Royal Łazienki Park. Among the topics discussed by the two leaders there were cooperation, economy and security, including the migration policy and protection of external border of the European Union.

At a joint press conference, Morawiecki said Poland and Italy had a long-standing history of friendship and cooperation, adding their current relations were based on common undestanding of reality and present problems. "Our countries have very similar visions for the development of our continent and the affairs that are taking place here," he added.

The Polish PM also said Poland and Italy had similar views on transatlantic ties which - in his view - were crucial for the security and future of Europe. Morawiecki added he was glad that Italy with Meloni at the helm was "on the same wavelength" as Poland, when it comes to the future of transatlantic relations.

"As long as solidarity is our bond, I believe, we are stronger together in Europe and together we will be achieving our goals very swiftly."

Meloni and Morawiecki agreed that Ukraine should receive real security guarantees ahead of the NATO summit in Vilnius, as Kyiv hopes to receive a strong signal that it will be able to join the alliance in future.

Ukraine has been pressing NATO to declare at the July 11-12 summit in Vilnius that Kyiv would join the alliance soon after the end of the war, and to set out a roadmap to membership.

But members such as the U.S. and Germany have been more cautious, wary of any moves they fear could take the alliance closer to an active war with Russia, which has long seen NATO's expansion as evidence of Western hostility.

"We are in perfect agreement with Poland on the need for real security guarantees for Ukraine, also because offering real security guarantees to Ukraine is also a key condition for the achievement in the future of a just and long-lasting peace," Giorgia Meloni said.

Meloni reiterated that Italy will keep giving "all round support" to Ukraine "for as long as necessary", and said "this also applies to the upcoming Vilnius summit".

Meloni has been a staunch supporter of Kyiv despite some misgivings among her conservative coalition allies, who in the past have been close to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Morawiecki said the two countries' views were in line also on Ukraine.

"Today's main topic is illegal immigration in Europe. We have spent quite a lot of time today discussing it with Miss Prime Minister and first of all, I would like to say that I understand Italy's stance to have the exterior (EU) borders strongly protected. This is also Poland's stance, this external dimension of illegal migration is a key one," the Polish prime minister said.

He added that in order for the European cooperation to go in the right direction, the EU should not push for integration of further areas "where the principle of subsidiarity should be binding".

"That's why our government, Poland, is against illegal immigration. We are also against imposing any fines for not accepting immigrants," Morawiecki underscored.

"We have stressed that many times, Giorgia has stressed many times how important it is to understand those countries in northern Africa and set the right asylum procedures over there and not let the situation when hundred thousands or millions of migrants come to Poland."

Later on Wednesday Meloni and Morawiecki were also to take part in a summit of European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) in Warsaw.

Meloni confirmed she and Morawiecki also discussed migration "which was a much-discussed topic in the last days and weeks". "And also here, I think, let’s say, our position is substantially the same, we want to stop illegal immigration. As long as Europe thinks about solving the problem by discussing how to handle illegal migration when it arrives on European ground, we will never find a real solution because the interests of our nations, even simply for geographic reasons, are different interests," the Italian PM said.

Meloni added the two countries were working in the same direction, "which is not how to manage illegal migration into Europe, but how to stop it".