Italy | Giorgia Meloni: The leadership of the man who seeks to become the new face of the European right | World

“I am Georgia. “I am a woman, I am a mother, I am Italian, I am Christian. ” In one sentence, Georgia Meloni He presented his personal and political ideology. It was 2019 and the campaign rallies went viral. Everyone started talking about “Mussolini’s heiress,” the politician who did not deny the legacy of the Italian dictator. But Meroni was perhaps not that. Those who paid attention to her began to see her as an alternative to escape the vicious cycle of corrupt politicians, she spoke out loud what many dared not to say.

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By then, Meroni was no longer an improviser in politics. In fact, she served as deputy speaker of the Chamber of Deputies and minister of youth in several governments of Silvio Berlusconi.

However, with the rise of the conservative right in Europe, his figure has begun to take on relevance. She has been called Italy’s “Le Pen” for her populism, Islamophobia, criticism of immigration, “globalism” and excessive control of the European Union.

His party, Brotherhood of Italy, was founded in 2012 and has its roots in the Italian Social Movement (MSI), which he joined at the age of 15 and was one of the organizations revived after World War II. World Cup, but they continue to have the motto of “Il Duce” as their goal: “God, Country and Family”.

Meroni eventually entered government in October 2022, and just as at the rally in 2019, she has in recent years defended her position as a woman, a mother – disavowing gender policies and what she calls the “LGBTQ lobby” – and her Italian identity, under the banner of nationalism, as a Christian, facing the advance of Muslim immigrants in a predominantly Catholic country.

Strategic shift

In the months since she came to power, Giorgia Meloni has realized that it is not useful for her to be on the right alone in order to gain prominence without being excluded by the complex Italian political system. The recent hosting of the G7 summit (the world’s seven most industrialized economies and democracies) is a perfect platform.

Thus, the Italians put aside their previous skepticism and harsh criticism of years ago, threw aside their identification with the EU, bowed to NATO and support for Ukraine; distanced themselves from China and deleted the word “abortion” in the final statement.

“People have understood that in this era, the only way to rebel is to remain true to who we are, and the only way to rebel is to be conservative.”

Georgia Meloni

“Since she joined the government, she has done a good job with her international image. But it’s not that Meroni presides over it, but that she has proven to be pragmatic,” Steven Forti, professor of contemporary history at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, ​​told El Comercio. “He has not moderated his proposals, neither his speeches nor his party’s programs, as he continues to maintain a policy of identity, but he understands that for his political survival and to have greater influence in Europe, he does not have to cross two red lines: Atlanticism, that is, defending Italy’s NATO membership and sending weapons to Ukraine, as it has done; and not manipulating Brussels too much.”

As a result, Meroni has shown good relations with Democrat Biden and moderate conservative European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

Likewise, Meloni wanted to rethink the G7 by inviting the leaders of emerging economies to show the need for multilateralism. Thus, Narendra Modi from India also attended the event; Argentine President Javier Milley and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, as well as several African heads of state. And to add to the icing on the cake, Pope Francis became the first pope to attend the summit.

“The pope’s presence is fundamental and symbolic. By inviting him, Meroni recognizes the value of Catholicism and Christianity in Italy and in the European Union, an identity issue in the face of the advance of Islamism caused by immigration,” said the Autonomous University of Mexico and the University of Anahuac.

The New European Right

For some, the Italian will fill the void left by German Angela Merkel, who was the undisputed leader of Europe until she left government, a space Frenchman Emmanuel Macron tried to occupy without success.

Forti disagrees: “I don’t think Meloni can fill this gap. If he knew how to play his cards well and had the support of the EPP, he could play an important role, but that moment has not yet arrived. If it wants to have a strong leadership within the EU, it still has a long way to go. Although Macron and Scholz are weakened, Germany and France remain crucial. Italy is a medium-sized, heavily indebted country with a stagnant economy and little money for large projects.”

What the prime minister seeks is to empower the European right and unite it around common ground, such as opposition to immigration, one of the main concerns of Europeans. At the same time, it must continue to put order inside Italy if it wants to shed the label of radical politics and truly stand out abroad.