Romanian Socialists Salute Appointment of Far-right Leader Giorgia Meloni as Italian PM

Romanian Socialists’ leader, Marcel Ciolacu, saluted the appointment of Giorgia Meloni as the first woman to be sworn in as Prime Minister in Italy. His appreciation was expressed on Twitter, the platform Romanian politicians use to be visible abroad.

Even though his post hasn’t gathered much engagement, it is critical for understanding the positioning of the Romanian politicians towards one of the most exciting political events in the EU. Italy, a country which has the third biggest economy in the EU and replaced the UK in terms of political influence in Europe, is now led by the leader of Fratelli d’Italia, Giorgia Meloni. Her party is famous for its nationalist views; some see this evolution as against European democratic values. Yet, democracy brings nationalists to power, and no one can censor that, including Ursula von der Leyen, who threatened to cut Italy’s funds if Fratelli d’Italia succeeded to power in the country.

Indeed, Fratelli d’Italia is a nationalist party, and some of its political agenda doesn’t coincide with the one of the European Union. European publications are announcing the rising of crypto-fascism to power in Italy. Still, Giorgia Meloni assured she would govern for all Italians and has never threatened to head Italy toward exiting the EU.

When positioning Romanian political parties to Italian politics evolution, we have to say that the prominent leaders didn’t hurry to salute the victory of Fratelli d’Italia or the appointment of Ms. Meloni as Prime Minister. Except for the regular official congratulations between the heads of European Governments, which made Romanian PM Ciuca express his congratulations, the other political party leaders avoided publicly expressing themselves on the subject.

Fratelli d’Italia has a Romanian branch and, according to its political agenda, wants to enter the Romanian Parliament in 2024. Maybe this potential competition in 2024 could be a reason for the silence of many, but it’s too early to say anything about what will be in two years.