BEIRUT: A strong and stable Lebanon is in the best interest of the entire region, Italian Parliament Speaker Laura Boldrini said Monday after holding talks with Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Tammam Salam.

For his part, Berri warned that the refugee crisis posed a danger not only to Lebanon and the region, but also to Europe, including Italy.

The impact of the presence of more than 1 million Syrian refugees, in addition to 500,000 Palestinian refugees, on Lebanon’s stability and weak infrastructure was a major topic in Boldrini’s talks with Berri, Salam and Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil.

Boldrini said that she decided to make this official visit “in view of Lebanon’s important and strategic role in the Mediterranean.”

“It is in the best interest of the entire region for Lebanon to remain stable, strong and an example for [sectarian] coexistence,” she told a joint news conference with Berri at the latter’s residence in Ain al-Tineh.

Boldrini said she asked Berri to increase Lebanon’s participation in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean, which includes 43 countries, including the European Union, the Balkan, North Africa and Middle East countries.

The Italian official lauded Lebanon’s capability to host a large influx of Syrian refugees and an estimated half million Palestinian refugees. The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees has registered around 1.1 million Syrian refugees in Lebanon, while the Lebanese government puts the actual number at more than 1.5 million. North Lebanon and the Bekaa governorates accommodate the highest number of refugees as they border war-ravaged Syria.

Moreover, Lebanon hosts about 500,000 Palestinian refugees residing mostly in 12 official camps across the country.

“We also spoke about the refugee problem. I praised the role of Lebanon which hosts 1.5 million Syrian refugees and a half million Palestinian refugees. I thanked Speaker Berri for Lebanon’s role in this respect,” Boldrini said.

Boldrini, who served as a spokesperson for the UNHCR from 1998 to 2012, stressed during the meeting with Berri that the refugees “cannot become a part of Lebanon’s fabric, especially since this hurts the internal Lebanese balances, which should be maintained in view of Lebanon’s important role.” Her remarks appeared to make an allusion to the widespread sensitive issue of naturalization.

A report last month by U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon drew the ire of Lebanese officials as it was interpreted as a call for Lebanon to resettle Syrian refugees, something the U.N. has vehemently denied.

Lebanese officials have repeatedly voiced their refusal to permanently resettle refugees in the country during meetings with U.N. envoys and foreign officials.

Boldrini said she agreed with Berri on the need to redouble efforts aimed at reaching a political settlement to the 5-year-old war in Syria. “A military solution is not sufficient and cannot lead to a final solution to the conflict in Syria,” she said.

Berri said he agreed with Boldrini on a memorandum of understanding and cooperation between the two countries’ parliaments to be signed soon by both Lebanese and Italian parliamentarians.

He said the talks focused on the number of refugees and displaced people in Lebanon. “The refugee crisis is posing a danger not only to Lebanon and the region, but also to European states, including Italy, because it increases extremism there,” Berri then stated at the joint news conference.

The talks also covered economic cooperation between Lebanon and Italy, “especially since the volume of Lebanese and Italian investments is the largest between Lebanon and any European state,” Berri said.

Berri praised the role played by Italian troops serving with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, in particular by outgoing UNIFIL commander Maj. Gen. Luciano Portolano.

“The Italian Brigade within UNIFIL is one of the three major powers and most effective,” Berri then added.

The Italian speaker’s talks with Salam at the Grand Serail centered on ways to expand relations between the two countries, the National News Agency reported.

Boldrini’s meetings with Berri and Salam were also attended by MP Michel Musa from Berri’s bloc and the Italian Ambassador to Lebanon Massimo Marotti.

Boldrini, who arrived in Beirut Sunday on an official visit, will also inspect her country’s contingent in UNIFIL in the south and tour a Syrian refugee camp in the eastern Bekaa Valley.