When it became clear in September 2022 that Giorgia’s Meloni right-wing coalition was on course to win Italy’s general election, Ursula von der Leyen issued a warning. ‘If things go in a difficult direction,’ declared the president of the European Commission, ‘…we have tools’.
Matteo Salvini, whose Liga party was a member of the coalition, denounced von der Leyen’s threat as ‘shameful arrogance’.
The marriage of convenience between von der Leyen and Meloni has benefited both in the last two years
The German’s fears have proved unfounded. Meloni’s government hasn’t gone in a ‘difficult direction’. On the contrary, Meloni seems to have moved gently to the centre, where von der Leyen resides. The two are often in each other’s company, touring flood-hit regions of Italy or visiting Lampedusa to see how the island is coping with the influx of migrants.
It is a mutually beneficial alliance. Italy is in line to receive €191 billion (£163 billion) from the EU’s Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), an initiative implemented in the wake of Covid-19. Some of this money comes in grants and the rest in loans: the first payment – €21 billion (£18 billion) – was issued in April 2022 and the third – €18.5 billion (£15.8 billion) – last October. Italy needs the money so Meloni knows that even if she was tempted to head off in a ‘difficult direction’ she could be reined in by von der Leyen. The Commission president made an example of Poland and froze more than €100 billion (£85 billion) in recovery funds to the country in 2021, money that was eventually handed over last month once the governing Law and Justice (PiS) party had been voted out of power.
But von der Leyen now needs the support of the Italian prime minister. She recently announced that she wants to serve another five-year term as President of the Commission, but her re-election is not a given.
Is Giorgia Meloni a secret centrist?
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12.03.2024
When it became clear in September 2022 that Giorgia’s Meloni right-wing coalition was on course to win Italy’s general election, Ursula von der Leyen issued a warning. ‘If things go in a difficult direction,’ declared the president of the European Commission, ‘…we have tools’.
Matteo Salvini, whose Liga party was a member of the coalition, denounced von der Leyen’s threat as ‘shameful arrogance’.
The marriage of convenience between von der Leyen and........
© The Spectator
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