Their formations, Fratelli d’Italia (post-fascism) and Lega (anti-immigration), are credited with the intent to vote at around 40% in the latest elections, just over two months from the initial elections. Adding Silvio Berlusconi’s right-wing party Forza Italia, the right-wing coalition would win between 45 and 48% of the vote.
Apart from European Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni, who denounced the “irresponsible” who ousted Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, the first reactions of Western leaders were measured. French President Emmanuel Macron satisfied himself by hailing Mario Draghi as “a great statesman”.
But behind the scenes, Europeans are “concerned” because Draghi, who visited Kyiv with Emmanuel Macron and Olaf Scholtz in June, “was an important factor in stability”, according to a diplomat stationed in Rome. “Whatever the political color of the future government, political, economic and military support for Ukraine must continue unabated.”
In response to some liberal headlines in the Italian press, Fratelli d’Italia boss in the Senate, Luca Siriani, spoke out on Wednesday against “fake news proclaiming barbarians at the gates” of Rome. “We have shown our seriousness in foreign policy favoring Italy, the European Union, NATO and Ukraine when it could cost us electorally too much.”
In fact, in the name of state sovereignty, Georgia Meloni explicitly condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine and defended aid to Kyiv. But Matteo Salvini, a declared admirer of Vladimir Putin, is struggling to get rid of his image, while Silvio Berlusconi, a personal friend of the Kremlin mentor, has remained virtually silent.
“Geopolitical turmoil”
For geopolitician Alfio Ciaressa, “a nationalist-conservative coalition would probably have a twisted politics, with lots of internal tensions involving the three parties’ different international positions”.
“Italy’s Atlanticist commitment cannot be questioned” but “we may see isolated initiatives by governing parties that will undermine trust in our country and undermine Western policy towards Putin”, he warned. warned.
In an editorial, the French newspaper Le Monde says that “there is a fear of a geopolitical upheaval that will constitute a return to power at the time of the next elections, amid energy concerns over the approach of winter, with these structures heavy with Vladimir.” A past of complacency with Putin”.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made a very diplomatic tweet on Thursday. Paying tribute to the deposed chief executive, he said he was confident that Rome would remain on Kyiv’s side: “Sincerely grateful to Mario Draghi for his unwavering support to Ukraine in the fight against Russian aggression and the defense of common European values. – Democracy and Freedom”.
“We will continue to work to strengthen cooperation between Ukraine and Italy. I am confident that the active support of Italians for Ukraine will continue,” he said.
Another important issue for Westerners, “the future executive will have to continue the enormous efforts to reduce Italy’s reliance on Russian energy” initiated by Mario Draghi, who still undertook a large gas purchase earlier in the week. The contract was signed. As for Algeria, underlines AFP interviewed European diplomat.
Calendar coincidence? As of Thursday morning, Gazprom’s deliveries in Italy increased by 70% to 36 million m3/d instead of 21 delivered daily in recent days.
“It is difficult to make a connection with Wednesday, when all signs converge for the collapse of the Euro-Atlanticist Draghi government of national unity”, online review Formiche.net, pushes the very Atlanticist.
Except that Russia also partially reopened gas taps for other European countries by restarting the Nord Stream gas pipeline on Thursday.
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