Work interview lasting about an hour and a quarter at Palazzo Chigi between the Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and the President of the EU Commission Ursula von der Leyen. The premier welcomed von der Leyen in the courtyard of Palazzo Chigi with an affectionate exchange of greetings. She shook hands in front of the photographers before going up for the interview.
Meloni-von der Leyen, exchange of views on the economy and migrants
At the end of the face-to-face meeting, a note from Palazzo Chigi made it known that «after the conversation in Brussels on the occasion of the first visit abroad as Prime Minister, today’s meeting, held with the participation of Minister Raffaele Fitto, represented an excellent opportunity for an exchange of views in preparation for the extraordinary European Council of 9-10 February dedicated in particular to the economy and migration”.
Meloni confirms Italy’s commitment to von der Leyen on the Pnrr
During the meeting between the Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and the President of the EU Commission Ursula von der Leyen “the commitment of the Italian Government on the Pnrr was also reaffirmed – continues the note”. The condemnation of the violent acts in Brazil and solidarity with the country’s democratic institutions were also shared. Finally, satisfaction was expressed for the signing of the joint EU-NATO declaration, scheduled for tomorrow in Brussels”.
Von der Leyen: spoke with Meloni about work on migrants
For her part, the president of the EU Commission relied on a tweet to comment on the visit. «A pleasure to meet Giorgia Meloni in Rome today. In view of the next meeting of the European Council we discussed how to: continue to support Ukraine; ensure secure and affordable energy; increase the competitiveness of EU industry; make progress on the Migration Pact. We also discussed the implementation of the Pnrr in Italy».
The Node of the Mes
Today’s talk therefore represented the resumption of that not very simple dialogue started in Brussels at the beginning of November, at Meloni’s first international outing in the midst of the tug of war with France on the issue of the Ocean Viking ship finally landed in Toulon following a diplomatic incident with French President Emmanuel Macron. In the meantime, the agreement on the price cap has been closed and the knot of the Mes has opened: after Germany, Italy is the only country that has not yet ratified the reform of the Salvi-Stati Fund, and there are no glimpses many possibilities to change the rules as the Italian government would like.