Migration, achieving solidarity among EU member states and addressing the situation in African countries will be among the topmost priorities of the French presidency in the first half of next year, according to Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian. He told Times of Malta following a meeting with Maltese counterpart Evarist Bartolo that France was determined to continue trying to convince other EU member states that migration was a European issue that had to be tackled collectively. He said there were negotiations on the European Commission’s proposed Asylum and Migration Pact but insisted the EU required a strategy on the matter and could not tackle the issue on the basis of emergencies.