French elections: Meloni has not yet broken the silence on Le Pen's success

Le Pen’s advantage is seen as a positive development for Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and for the ECR’s role within the EU, according to Italian media.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Melania has yet to make a public comment following Marine Le Pen’s right-wing party’s victory in the first round of French elections this weekend. However, other officials have been quick to express their views.

The first to react to the news of the National Rally’s success in Italy was the right-wing Matteo Salvini, historically a political ally of Le Pen. He congratulated her while taking the opportunity to criticize French President Emmanuel Macron.

Enrico Letta, leader of the left-wing Democratic Party, said the Italian government’s attitude in Europe depended on the outcome of the French elections, adding that Le Pen’s expected first-round victory had prompted Meloni to abstain from the EU summit vote to endorse Ursula von der Leyen as her candidate for re-election as European Commission president.

Despite Meloni’s silence, information published in the newspaper La Repubblica suggests that she would have preferred a clearer victory for Marine Le Pen in the first round of voting to destabilize the balance of power within the European Union. Meloni reportedly complained about being excluded from negotiations over appointments to key EU posts.

According to the newspaper Il Giornale, Le Pen’s advantage is seen as a positive development for the role of Meloni and the far-right ECR group in the EU, which could help Meloni’s goal of securing a senior position in the European Commission for Italy.