Macron met Meloni in Rome, with whom he promises “dialogue and ambition”

Filippo Attili/Oficina de Prensa La primera ministra italiana, Giorgia Meloni, saluted al presidente frances, Emmanuel Macron, during an encuentro in Roma, Italia. October 23, 2022. Filippo Attili/Oficina de Prensa del Palacio Chigi/entrega via Reuters. ATENCIÓN EDITORES – ESTA IMAGEN FUE ENTREGADA POR UNA TERCERA PARTE. OBLIGATORY CREDIT. NEITHER ARCHIVO NOR REVENTAS.

Filippo Attili/Oficina de Prensa

Giorgia Meloni met Emmanuel Macron, this Sunday, October 23 in Rome, as shown in this photo published by the press service of the Italian Prime Minister.

INTERNATIONAL – Barely taking office, the new Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni made her debut on the international scene this Sunday, October 23 by meeting Emmanuel Macron in the evening in Romeduring his first tete-a-tete with a foreign leader.

Until the end, the Élysée maintained uncertainty about this interview with the French presidentwhich was held discreetly and away from the cameras in the center of the Italian capital for just over an hour.

“As Europeans, in neighboring countries, as friendly peoples, with Italy we must continue all the work started. Succeeding together, with dialogue and ambition, we owe it to our youth and our peoples”tweeted Emmanuel Macron with a photo alongside Giorgia Meloni.

However, he was careful to tweet just before “Grazie Mario”, a thank you to Mario Draghi, the outgoing Prime Minister with whom he had a close relationship. As if to warn the head of the most right-wing government since the birth of the Italian Republic in 1946 that the bar has been set very high by her predecessor.

The Élysée reported that Emmanuel Macron had “Congratulations to the Prime Minister” during exchanges “pragmatic and constructive”but also “franks”.

“We will judge a little on the actions”, “there is vigilance, there is a requirement on the part of the President of the Republic”underlined those around him, while Paris had already warned the winner of the Italian elections about respecting the rule of law.

Warnings that presage strained relations with the eurosceptic and sovereignist Meloni. According to Rome, the interview, “friendly and productive”focused on “the need for rapid and common responses to soaring energy prices” at European level, the “support for Ukraine” or “management of migratory flows”.

The two leaders expressed their “willingness to pursue cooperation on major common challenges at European level while respecting respective national interests”concluded the presidency of the Italian council in a press release.

Debt and inflation

Emmanuel Macron’s visit is dedicated to an international forum on peace, where he delivered a speech on Sunday, and an audience with Pope Francis scheduled for Monday morning. But he could not circumvent the Italian political context, with the coming to power of the post-fascist leader at the head of a coalition dominated by the far right.

Franco-Italian relations, in good shape as long as Mario Draghi ruled the Peninsula, risk crossing a zone of turbulence with the eurosceptic and sovereignist Meloni. But Emmanuel Macron had assured Friday to be “very ready to work with her”.

This Sunday morning, Mario Draghi, very appreciated on the international level, had passed the torch to Giorgia Meloni under the golds of Palazzo Chigi, seat of government in Rome.

A century after Benito Mussolini came to power, this ex-admirer of the Duce has thus taken the head of the most right-wing government in the country since the birth of the Republic in 1946.

On Saturday, the European Union, worried about the coming to power of the far right in Italy, the founding country of Europe, said it was ready to “cooperate” with the Meloni government.

The 45-year-old Roman, who won a historic victory in the September 25 legislative elections, managed to make her Fratelli d’Italia (Brothers of Italy) party respectable to gain power at the head of a government of 24 ministers – including only six women.

She has with her coalition partners – the populist anti-migrant leader of the League, Matteo Salvini, and the declining leader of Forza Italia, Silvio Berlusconi – an absolute majority in both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.

Many challenges await, mainly economic, starting with inflation and the debt whose ratio is the highest in the euro zone after Greece.

Already cracks in Meloni’s coalition

The composition of the new government reflects the desire to reassure Rome’s partners. Former President of the European Parliament Antonio Tajani was appointed to Foreign Affairs, with the title of Deputy Prime Minister, while Giancarlo Giorgetti, a representative of the moderate wing of the League, already a minister in the outgoing government of Mario Draghi inherits the Economy portfolio.

Giorgia Meloni’s task promises to be the toughest as her coalition is already showing cracks.

This Sunday, she also called on her government to “stay together” at the end of the first Council of Ministers, against a backdrop of tensions with Silvio Berlusconi and Matteo Salvini.

The latter are reluctant to accept the authority of Giorgia Meloni, whose party won 26% of the vote in the elections, against 8% for Forza Italia and 9% for the League.

Itself an Atlanticist and in favor of supporting theUkraine against Russia, Giorgia Meloni had to face this week the controversial remarks of Silvio Berlusconi, who claimed to have “renewed” with Russian President Vladimir Putin and blamed kyiv for the war.

Giorgia Meloni corrected the situation by saying that Italy is doing “fully gone and head held high” of Europe and NATO.

A message well received in Washington, kyiv and NATO, whose Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg sent his ” congratulations “ to Giorgia Meloni. US President Joe Biden said on Saturday he had ” hurry “ to work with her.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said to himself “looking forward to continuing the fruitful cooperation” with Roma. ” You are not alone ! » replied Giorgia Meloni: “Italy will always be at the side of the courageous Ukrainian people who are fighting for their freedom and a legitimate peace”.

See also on The HuffPost :


source site