Italy’s Meloni: Right-wing coalition meets president on forming government

Italy’s far-right leader Giorgia Meloni and her coalition allies hold talks on forming a government on Friday with President Sergio Mattarella.

If the parties agree terms, a Meloni-led coalition could be sworn in this weekend, a month after elections.

Veteran ex-prime minister Silvio Berlusconi is set to join the talks, despite shaking the coalition’s unity with leaked pro-Putin remarks.

Ms Meloni vowed to play a key part in Nato – the Western military alliance.

“Italy with us in government will never be the weak link in the West,” she said, in attempt to calm concerns about her future foreign policy.

Outgoing Prime Minister Mario Draghi, who is in Brussels for an EU summit, also stressed that Italy’s membership of the EU and Nato was at the heart of its foreign policy.

It is now seen as almost a formality that his successor will be asked to form a government as early as Friday afternoon, despite the row surrounding the 86-year-old Mr Berlusconi – leader of centre-right Forza Italia.

Agencies