Italy-Germany summit, Meloni in the field for the EU Pact - News

The Action Plan is ready, all that is missing is the signature of the Heads of Government on the guidelines with which Italy and Germany will manage the enhanced political cooperation. They will put it at Wednesday's intergovernmental summit in Berlin, which could also be a turning point in the negotiations on the new Stability Pact. The prime minister (who from Germany will also participate in the virtual summit of the G20) will be accompanied by half of the government, starting with the Minister of Economy Giancarlo Giorgetti, who in Germany will have a confrontation with his German counterpart Christian Lindner after meeting in the next few hours in Paris his French colleague Bruno Le Maire.

This triangulation is the basis for a good part of the chances of reaching an agreement on the new stability and growth rules by the end of the year. In the search for an agreement that is digestible both for the so-called frugal countries and for those that ask for more flexibility, the key lies in the magnitude of the average annual reduction of debt for those who have more. It takes time to bring the parties closer together. As expected, an extraordinary Ecofin Council has been scheduled, but not at the end of November: the examination of the Spanish legislative proposal on the reform will be held at a dinner on the evening of 7 December, on the eve of the EU Council of the Economy. "We will certainly also talk about the new Stability Pact with our German friends", explains Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, reiterating the need for "the contents of the agreement not to cause damage to our economy". Only an agreement that goes in this direction could, in Rome's intentions, lead to different assessments on the ESM, the ratification of which is scheduled for Wednesday in the Chamber of Deputies but with a high probability of being postponed again.

Meanwhile, Palazzo Chigi applauds the 6-month extension decided by the EU Commission for some sections of the temporary framework on state aid against high energy prices, put in place after the war in Ukraine. "It welcomes - comments the Prime Minister - the request, brought forward first of all by Italy, to allow a phase of gradual and sustainable exit from the support measures adopted by the Government in recent months".

In a wide-ranging perspective of cooperation, the focus of the summit between Meloni, Chancellor Olaf Scholz and their respective ministers of Foreign Affairs, Economy, Interior, Defense, Labor and Research, will be the new agreement, the foundations of which had been laid by the Draghi government. A pact comparable to the Treaty of the Quirinal that already binds Rome and Paris, or to that of Aachen between France and Germany. This completes the triangulation between the three great founding countries of the EU, seven years after the last Italy-Germany intergovernmental summit. And this diplomatic tool could prove useful, especially now that there is a conservative government in Rome and a social democratic one in Berlin, which are overcoming the initial cold, to the point that Scholz is looking with interest at the Italy-Albania protocol on migrants.

A topic destined in all likelihood to enter question time that Meloni could answer on Thursday afternoon in the Senate. Another appointment in an intense week, in which tomorrow is also circled in red: in fact, the EU Commission is expected to examine Italy's Draft Budgetary Plan for 2024. The opinion is based on the adherence of the Meloni government's maneuver to the May recommendations. A key step for the executive, as the process in the Senate is about to get underway, with the deadline for amendments expiring. The opposition is preparing hundreds of them.

"On Wednesday, we will present our alternative maneuver to the national leadership of the Democratic Party," explains secretary Elly Schlein. The text, however, as is well known, is substantially armored. The majority agreement should hold, no changes except with a maxi amendment by the government, which could include an adjustment on doctors' pensions.

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