"L 'Italy it is a great democratic country that is capable of taking care of itself" and therefore "respect is needed from those who are about to take on government roles in an allied country: do not give us prescriptions": few words but clear and sharp, as could not be better, those of the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, he addressed to Elon Musk who, with the attitude of a suburban bully, had ruled that the Italian judges who opposed the Meloni decree on migrants in Albania “must go away”. But who does Musk think he has become? An Eternal Father? Resign yourself: he is not and he will not become one.
But be careful: Mattarella's clear response, as "Il Foglio" rightly suggests, is not only aimed at Musk but also closely concerns the American President. Donald Trump and the Italian premier Giorgia Meloni. It is a signal to say that interference in our country is not allowed and that the Quirinale will do everything to reject it in the name of true patriotism and not one that alternates depending on the color and origin of the interference. Mattarella's message goes beyond contingent issues and is a preventive warning to Trump and Meloni to say: 1) no jokes about Ukraine which cannot be sacrificed on the altar of opportunism; 2) easy on the duties, which always end up calling for other duties and which are a real drag even for America's friendly countries like Italy; 3) as he has already recalled Mario Draghi, we must not be afraid of Trump's America but we must deal with Washington in a united front of Europe that, to be more united, cannot allow itself to be ensnared by the immobility of pro-Russian countries and instead needs a new governance. Which means: deciding in the EU by majority and no longer by unanimity. And Meloni must come to terms with this. It is inconceivable that a single country, in this case Italy, blocks an important reform like the ESM in all of Europe.
