Meloni takes over as Italian premier

Far-right leader Giorgia Meloni took office yesterday as Italy’s first woman prime minister, calling on the fractious members of her coalition government to unite as they face looming crises on several fronts.Four weeks after her post-fascist Brothers of Italy party won general elections, Meloni formally assumed office in a handover ceremony with outgoing premier Mario Draghi, before gathering her cabinet.“We must be united, there are emergencies the country is facing. We have to work together,” the 45-year-old told her ministers during their first meeting, lasting half an hour.The new government is the most far-right in Italy since World War II, and takes power at a time of soaring inflation and an energy crisis linked to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.It has already been rocked by tensions within Meloni’s coalition, which includes Matteo Salvini’s far-right League party and former premier Silvio Berlusconi’s right-wing Forza Italia.Meloni was forced this week to repeat her unwavering support for Ukraine and Western sanctions against Russia after Berlusconi was recorded defending President Vladimir Putin.The prospect of a Eurosceptic, populist government taking the helm of the eurozone’s third largest economy has already sparked concern among Italy’s allies, particularly in the EU.European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Saturday that she had a “good first call” with Meloni, saying she looked forward to “constructive co-operation”.Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany said he wanted to keep “working closely together with Italy in EU, Nato and G7” – a sentiment Meloni reflected in responses to congratulatory messages on Twitter.A spokesman for French President Emmanuel Macron meanwhile left open the possibility that he will be the first foreign leader to meet Meloni, as he headed to Rome and the Vatican for a pre-planned visit.Meloni and her 24 ministers were sworn in on Saturday before President Sergio Mattarella and she declared her intention to get “straight to work”.Yesterday she joined outgoing prime minister Draghi for a formal handover of power.They held private talks for almost 90 minutes before a smiling Draghi symbolically handed to Meloni a small bell used in cabinet debates, which she, grinning, rang a few times for the television cameras.As a teenage activist, Meloni praised late dictator Benito Mussolini, but insists fascism is history and has transformed her party from a marginal group of radicals to a national force.Brothers of Italy won just 4% of the vote in 2018 elections, but secured a 26% in the September 25 poll.