The appointment has not yet been made official, but the former foreign minister will earn a golden salary as the European Union’s special envoy to the Persian Gulf.
It’s still missing official, but there seems to be no doubt that Louis DiMaio he will be the special envoy identified by the European Union for the Persian Gulf. The former foreign minister will be indicated shortly by the EU High Representative, Josep Borrell, despite the criticisms that have come – in an all-Italian paradox – more from within than from without. For days, in fact, the League has been protesting the appointment of Di Maio. And today also came the comment of his former political boss, Giuseppe Conte, with whom evidently there has been bad blood since the split: “We wish Di Maio a good job – said the leader of the 5 Star Movement – In spite of himself, he has become the metaphor for the perverse logic of power“.
The former parliamentarian, former minister in several governments, will receive a golden salary, revealed a few days ago by Lega MEP Marco Zanni: “It is assumed that the salary for this role could correspond to that of an AD14-15“, explained the Carroccio MEP referring to a previous question. Scrolling through the EU table for the position that will be covered by Di Maio, we read that the former foreign minister will receive a minimum salary of 13 thousand euros a month, which it could rise up to 16 thousand in case of transfers abroad.
“Luigi Di Maio during his mandate as head of the Farnesina repeatedly created diplomatic incidents with some countries part of the Persian Gulf – Zanni then accused – I don’t understand how it can play a crucial role of mediation and diplomacy in an unstable area with fragile geopolitical balances“.
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Di Maio will also enjoy the status of diplomat, will have a passport and immunity. The assignment will last for a total of 21 months, from June 1 to February 28, 2025. Borrell’s staff have not confirmed the assignment at the moment and there is still time. But the official nature of Di Maio’s appointment as special envoy now seems like a formality.