Meloni leaves the decision on the presidency of the European Commission open

Italy’s right-wing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni wants to wait for the official nomination of the conservative European People’s Party (EPP) in the European Parliament before deciding on the presidency of the future EU Commission.

“The proposal is the responsibility of the PPE and, when it is completed, we will make our assessments,” said Meloni on Saturday, at the end of the G7 summit in southern Italy.

She said it was important that Italy was given “due” consideration in the new Commission. It must also be clear “that Europe understood the message of the European elections”.

The PPE, a group of conservative parties across the continent, had the best performance in last Sunday’s European elections. He wants the current President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, to receive a second five-year term in Brussels.

However, it is uncertain whether Germany’s conservative policy would get enough votes from its current supporters in the European Parliament if it were nominated by EU heads of state and government. She may therefore have to rely on votes from Meloni’s far-right Fratelli d’Italia (Brothers of Italy) party.