The EU chief made the comments to member states, as Italy kicks off a contested migrant processing scheme.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has said the EU could “draw lessons” from a contested Italian policy of processing migrants offshore in Albania, as leaders of the 27 member states hold an EU summit focusing on migration.

Ahead of the Brussels summit, she wrote to EU leaders to say the EU’s executive would present a new proposal for legislation to increase deportations of migrants…

Italy has begun sending some migrants to a processing centre in Albania earlier this week.