Giorgia Meloni (Brothers of Italy) will be prime minister, but the formation of her government will be tortuous, as are the relations with her partners. Matteo Salvini (Northern League) wants Interior, a fundamental ministry for any executive but even more so for one of the extreme right, which focuses on borders and security.
Salvini’s ultimatum is summed up in “Interior or external support only”. Two factors to take into account: Meloni is not willing to give up this key portfolio that she legitimately believes belongs to her as the winner of the elections and Salvini is not willing to give it up – she already held it between 2018 and 2019 – because it is the biggest showcase and springboard to catch your breath after a bump at the polls.
[Tribuna: Meloni tiene que escoger: patriotismo o traición]
Brothers of Italy multiplied their votes by four compared to 2018 while between the League and Forza Italia -of Silvio Berlusconi– lost 5.5 million of them (3.2 and 2.3, respectively). And Salvini, singled out in his ranks, will take full advantage of the fact that Meloni needs him to save his party and his career as well.
There is a third factor that transcends the deep-seated disputes between politicians: Meloni knows that the international community has its eyes on her and that there is fear. That’s why her pact with mario draghi to calm the European Union or, back to the matter, his rejection of Salvini, seen as pro-Russian. Meloni has already expressed her “loyal support” to Volodymyr Zelensky and the Ukrainian people.
“Unit of Intent”
This Wednesday, Meloni and Salvini held a first meeting at the Palazzo Montecitorio, where the Chamber of Deputies is based. The inverted commas that the protagonists wanted to transcend is “unity of intentions”, but the focus was not on the ends, but on the construction of the government.
[El juego de poder de EEUU y Rusia: seducir a Meloni para asegurarse un socio en la guerra de Ucrania]
“Both leaders have expressed their satisfaction with the confidence received from the Italians – reads a joint note at the end of the meeting -. (…) They have reviewed the situation of the priorities and urgencies on the agenda of the Government and Parliament, also in view of the complex situation that Italy is experiencing”.
Italy ‘is experiencing a complex situation’ but before that Meloni has to resolve other non-programmatic fronts. To Salvini’s demand with the Interior is added Berlusconi’s with the Senate: he wants to preside over it. A Berlusconi that Meloni also has plenty of, among other things, his praise for Vladimir Putin or his justification for war.
