(Bloomberg) -- Giorgia Meloni’s move to oppose a new term for European Commission chief Ursala von der Leyen won’t isolate Italy or keep the country out of decision-making in the future, the prime minister told daily Corriere della Sera.
The European Parliament voted Thursday in a secret ballot to approve von der Leyen’s renomination, which she won easily. Lawmakers in Brussels allied with the Italian premier voted against the reappointment, highlighting tensions between Meloni and European institutions.
But the country’s ability to work with leaders in Brussels won’t be compromised by the “no” vote, Meloni told Corriere. “We’ve worked together up to now and we’ll continue to do so in the future,” she said.
The snub of von der Leyen was a switch to a gloves-off strategy for Italy’s leader, after she was left out of the closed-door negotiations over the union’s top jobs despite her success in European parliamentary elections.
Now, Italy could risk being shunted aside by countries that demonstrated loyalty to the commission chief, even after less successful results from the European ballot.
Asked if German Chancellor Olaf Scholz or French President Emmanuel Macron could try to marginalize Italy in Brussels, Meloni said future decisions will rest with the commission, “with whom we’ve already shown we can work together loyally,” even from outside the majority.
The Meloni government has helped the commission “when we’ve been convinced it’s in the interest of Italy and of Europe, I have no reason to think it won’t also be like that in the future,” Meloni told the newspaper.
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