A year ago, the French ambassador to Rome, Christian Masset, was recalled to Paris, after months of Italian provocations and a few French blunders. A year later, the two countries formalize their reunion in a sunny Naples that went out of its way to welcome Emmanuel Macron, and take him through the city, from the San Ferdinando Theater to the house of Eduardo de Filippo, beloved author of the president, until the veiled Christ of the Sansevero chapel. The opportunity for a friendly trip that has shown the world that in Italy, life goes on.
This visit was held in the middle of the coronavirus crisis which has put the government of Rome under pressure for a week. The Prime Minister, Giuseppe Conte, thus released for just a few hours the emergencies of civil protection, entirely devoted to the fight against the virus, to welcome with all the honors the French President. And France came in large delegation, with no less than eleven ministers, to show its support for Italy, and to state loud and clear that it would not close the borders with its neighbor. More than its final result, it is the very fact that this summit took place, which in itself constitutes the event of the day. More than the text of the press release, it was the group photos and the many friendly moments that counted yesterday. "It is a gesture of proximity with Italy, at the same time as a signal to the international community ", noted, Thursday, Luigi Di Maio in an interview with Le Monde .
Despite the exceptional circumstances, the two countries have done everything to resume a tradition that dates back to 1982: that of annual summits between heads of state and government which aim to " discuss international issues, sign bilateral agreements and address difficulties of the moment in an institutional framework , "recalls Professor Jean Pierre Darnis, specialist in Franco-Italian relations at the University of Nice Sophia Antipolis, in Affari italiani. A tradition that had been interrupted for two years with the coming to power of a government formed of the League and the 5-star Movement, both of which had attacked the French President their business, riding on the resurgence anti-French sentiment.
Common positions
The summit was to give rise to some signatures: support for the union between Naval Group and Fincantieri in force since the beginning of the year, knowing that the merger of the two groups awaits the green light from Brussels; an agreement between the Italian Cassa Depositi e Prestiti and BPI, for the financing of innovative projects. And agreements on cultural and university exchanges.
But it was above all a question of putting forward the common positions on the European files of the moment. Paris and Rome are ardent defenders of key reforms for the future of the Union, in particular those on a softening of the stability and growth pact, with an exit of green investments and spending to respond to emergency situations a 3% deficit. The two countries are also in favor of reforming competition law in the single market to allow the creation of European champions; state aid reform; the introduction of a carbon tax at the external borders of Europe to combat environmental dumping; and finally taxation of Gafa on their local turnover.
It seems that the Italians are still very hesitant about the precise modalities of this new dialogue.On Libya, the two countries have given their violins to weigh together within Europe against Russia and Turkey, demanding a cease-fire between the enemy factions and an embargo on the sale of weapons. Finally, Italy has undertaken to provide more aid to France in its fight against terrorism in the Sahel.
This summit, profitable for the Conte 2 government, born in September 2019 from an alliance between the Democratic Party and the 5-star movement, allows Italy to strongly re-anchor in the European project. Two weeks ago, already with the help of France, Italy joined the group of the three largest European powers, also made up of Germany and the United Kingdom, where the great options of the Union are discussed .
This summit will ultimately have made little progress on relaunching the Quirinal Treaty, a project launched at the end of 2017 and suspended since 2018, which aimed to institute systematic exchanges between the two governments on the model of Franco-German relations. Certainly, we say on both sides to wish to achieve something by the end of the year. But if France and Italy wish to consult more often, " in a more stable and systematic framework", in the words of the Italian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Vincenzo Amendola, a very Francophile Neapolitan, it seems that the Italians are still very hesitant about the precise modalities of this new dialogue. And they do not necessarily want to follow the Franco-German model to the letter.
