(VOVworld) – Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and visiting German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday talked about the necessary of bilateral cooperation in resolving the EU’s common challenges.

At a joint press conference in Rome after a bilateral meeting, the two leaders said they share the same approach to handling the migrant crisis and criticized Austria’s border closure policy, which has led to an increasing number of illegal migrants from North Africa heading to EU countries through Italy.

The two leaders praised the plan to use Eurobonds to help Africa reduce the causes of migration.