Tension in Europe over Italy’s political situation

Writing in The New York Times International Edition, Beppe Severgnini, the editor in chief of Corriere della Sera‘s magazine 7, argues that President Mattarella, in rejecting Italy’s proposed government on Sunday, has given voters a chance to rethink a historic election.

A commentary in NRC Next says that Sergio Mattarella’s decision has prevented chaos and disaster in the short term, but the challenge is now for the Italian democracy to find a way to address the grievances of Italian voters.

For former Greek Finance Minister Varoufakis, however, in an op-ed article in NRC Next, President Mattarella abused his position to hamper the formation of the Italian government; it is not only a moral mistake to block the appointment of a Eurosceptical Finance Minister, it is also a tactical blunder, Mr Varoufakis says.

The establishment’s “blatant” contempt for voters can be seen in today’s Italy, where President Mattarella has refused to appoint a government that reflects the country’s election result, an editorial in the Daily Mail suggests, while an editorial in The Sun claims that Italian voters were robbed of the eurosceptic government they voted for by a president “doing Brussels’ dirty work.”

According to a commentary in Die Welt, President Mattarella’s decision to form a technocratic government will actually drive voters into the arms of extremist parties. Economist Carlo Cottarelli, chosen by the Italian President to form a new government, is expected to announce the list of the future members of the latter this Wednesday morning, Le Figaro reports.

According to Le Figaro, there will be twelve members, all coming from public institutions and civil society and it is certain that Mr Cottarelli will not have the confidence of the Italian Parliament during the vote that will probably take place next Monday – as all right-wing parties and the M5S will not accept the proposal, and the Democratic Party will abstain from the vote.

After such a failure, the French newspaper adds, Mr Cottarelli will have to resign and will be in charge of conducting daily business until the holding of new elections. Fresh elections are now looming as the most likely outcome, the Irish media reports, as Prime Minister Cottarelli is assembling a cabinet line-up despite almost certain rejection by Italy’s populist parties.

In an interview with Corriere della Sera, while stressing that Italians are “mature” and capable of deciding themselves, European Parliament President Antonio Tajani says it would be better to hold elections “after the summer” when fewer people are away on holiday. Mr Tajani hopes that the election will not become a referendum on Italy’s eurozone membership, as leaving the common currency would be “crazy.”

On Tuesday, Commissioner Oettinger made a provocative statement which caused anger within the Italian political circles, Le Figaro notes. “Markets will teach Italians how to vote,” Mr Oettinger stressed before trying to calm things down, saying, last night, as reported by The Daily Telegraph: “I did not mean to be disrespectful and I apologise for this.”

According to Italy’s Canale 5, the German journalist who initially reported on Mr Oettinger’s statement later apologised for the way he presented Oettinger’s comments as this was a summarised version of the views expressed by Mr Oettinger in a full interview. “It is only the Italians who decide on the future of their country,” the Commission’s chief spokesman said after describing the remarks attributed to Commissioner Oettinger as “unwise,” the British newspaper reports.

Following Mr Oettinger’s controverted statement, President Juncker released a statement expressing his conviction that “Italy’s fate does not lie in the hands of the financial markets,” sources such as Canale 5, sigmalive.com and xinhuanet.com report. “Regardless of which political party may be in power, Italy is a founding member of the EU that has contributed immensely to European integration,” President Juncker noted, adding that Italy will continue on its European path and that the Commission is ready to work with the country with responsibility and mutual respect.

As to European Council President Donald Tusk, he told senior EU figures in Brussels to stop lecturing Italy about voting for Eurosceptic parties, The Daily Telegraph reports, saying: “My appeal to all EU institutions: please respect the voters. We are there to serve them, not to lecture them,” Mr Tusk posted on Twitter.