The German far-right party AfD congratulates Meloni on his victory in the elections in Italy

BERLIN/BRUSSELS, 26 Sep. (DPA) –

The German far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party congratulated Giorgia Meloni, leader of the neo-fascist Brothers of Italy party, on Monday for her victory in the general elections held on Sunday in Italy.

“We, as Alternative for Germany, congratulate Giorgia Meloni on her election and wish her to be the first woman to preside over an Italian government,” the two leaders of the party, Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla, said in a statement. Like the Swedes, the Italians have also now decided on a policy change.

“Germany is practically alone in Europe with its ecological leftist coalition,” they pointed out in their statement, referring to the government headed by Chancellor Olaf Scholz, made up of members of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), the Greens and the Liberal Party ( FDP), as reported by the German news agency DPA.

In contrast, Jurgen Hardt, a parliamentarian from the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), has expressed concern about Meloni’s “openly post-fascist statements” and the “creepy positions” of several members of Brothers of Italy. “Racism and the exclusion of minorities cannot continue to take place in Europe,” he explained.

“In Germany and in Brussels the new Italian government will be judged on its contribution to the future of Europe, its compliance with the sanctions against Russia and its progress in rebuilding the Italian economy”, he assessed, before noting that the former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi will be key in the formation of the Executive. “One can only hope that, at his advanced age, he will be able to see the implications of his decisions and keep the government on the right track,” he has argued.

For his part, Alexander Graf Lambsdorff, of the Free Democratic Party (FDP), has indicated that he hopes that Meloni’s election will lead to a more complicated decision-making process at the European Union level. “Every time it is more laborious”, he has indicated in declarations to the public broadcaster ARD, in reference to migratory matters, internal market and return to the stability and growth pact.