British Conservative Prime Minister Liz Truss has congratulated her Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni, leader of the right-wing nationalist party Fratelli d’Italia, on the outcome of the parliamentary elections. Meloni got 26 percent of the vote. Prime Minister Mark Rutte on winning the election says developments in Italy are “a cause for concern”.
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“Congratulations to Georgia Meloni on the success of her party,” Truss wrote on Twitter. “From supporting Ukraine to tackling global economic problems, the UK and Italy are close allies.” Truss’s reaction contrasts somewhat with the mixed sentiment being vented in France, Germany, Spain and on behalf of the European Union. On the other hand, Polish government leader Mateusz Morawiecki spoke of a “great victory”, and Hungarian nationalist Viktor Orban called Meloni’s victory “deserved”.
takes care
Prime Minister Mark Rutte says developments in Italy are “a cause for concern” over the electoral victory of Georgia Meloni’s far-right Fratelli d’Italia. In an interview in Op1 newspaper, Rutte said her party and the right-wing parties with which Meloni wants to collaborate “have said and done things that make you say ‘there is reason to be vigilant'”.
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The Prime Minister has not yet congratulated Meloni on her victory, but according to him this is only usual when she is already prime minister. He will also try to work with Meloni. “You shouldn’t be naive, but you should give it a chance,” the prime minister said.
collision course
Rutte expressed his concerns about Italy after mentioning Hungary and Poland. Those countries have been on a collision course with the rest of the European Union for some time, due in part to their handling of the rule of law, for example. The European Commission wants to impose a penalty of 7.5 billion euros on Hungary, in order to force Hungarian President Viktor Orban to fight corruption and fraud in his country.
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