(Bloomberg) -- French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte pledged to work together on containing migration across the Mediterranean and deepen integration in the euro zone, as they put on a show of unity after a dispute between their two countries.

“There is a strong convergence between the two countries” on creating a common budget in the euro zone, Macron told reporters after talks at the presidential palace in Paris. “With Macron, there’s a perfect understanding,” Conte said.

Friday’s meeting between the two leaders was almost called off after the French government’s spokesman said earlier this week that Macron had told a cabinet meeting that the Italian government had been “cynical and irresponsible” in refusing to accept a migrant ship.

To contact the reporters on this story: Gregory Viscusi in Paris at gviscusi@bloomberg.net;John Follain in Rome at jfollain2@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Alan Crawford at acrawford6@bloomberg.net, Kevin Costelloe

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