Meloni flies to London to reassure the markets and strengthen the axis with Sunak

The importance that Giorgia Meloni he attributes to relations with the United Kingdom, it is also clear from how his trip to London was organised. The premier, from today in the City, will stay for two days. An unprecedented case for a trip to a European country. On the other hand, it takes time to frame the Downing Street meeting with the prime minister Rishi Sunak, today at 3 pm local time, with the cultural and economic tour awaiting the premier, who is busy visiting the millenary Benedictine mosaics in Westminster and the exhibition dedicated to St. Francis of Assisi in the National gallery, exceptionally open for the occasion. Even the conversation with Sunak was organized with the intention of underlining the political weight of the meeting: it will last three hours, according to rumors, a record for the British. In the evening there will then be dinner with the Italian delegation at the embassy.

In the background are financial worries. The frightening news is that Moody’s is thinking of downgrading Italian bonds close to “junk bonds”. The decision will be made in the next credit assessment scheduled for May 19. Meloni’s trip will also be an attempt to arrange appointments and send a reassuring message to investors.

With Prime Minister Sunak, the issues on the table are many and far-reaching. A coordination in foreign policy is hoped between the two governments, in particular on Ukraine – on which both leaders have always emphasized their firm support – Africa and the Indo-Pacific. An opportunity for Meloni to further hinge the line of the Italian government from an Atlanticist point of view. The agreement between the two may also prove useful on the European front, with the United Kingdom engaged in negotiations with Brussels on various fronts.

With Sunak, Meloni will also talk about migratory flows, the industrial collaboration that sees the two countries engaged with Japan in the construction of Tempest, a sixth generation supersonic jet, and trade exchanges marked by the breaking of Brexit.

One of the most interesting fields of comparison concerns trade. Return to Rome after signing a post-Brexit bilateral agreement, in the wake of those that the United Kingdom has already closed with France and Germany, would be the most expendable result for Meloni. The memorandum of understanding that the minister last February should be read in this sense Antonio Tajani signed with the Minister for International Trade and Enterprise, Kemi Badenoch, to deepen the solid economic partnership between the two countries.

Meloni and Sunak had already met for an interview last November in Sharm el Sheikh, on the sidelines of the COP27 summit. Between the two there is a shared political sensitivity that brings possible agreements closer together. It is no coincidence that today’s meeting was preceded by a busy schedule of political and diplomatic visits in recent months. As noted by Agenzia Nova, Undersecretary for Foreign Affairs Giorgio Silli stopped in London on 13 March, Justice Minister Carlo Nordio on no less than two occasions – at the end of February and on 21 March – and last week the governor of the Bank of Italy Ignazio Visco. Even more important, however, was the visit of three ministers of the British government – Foreign Minister James Cleverly, Defense Minister Ben Wallace and International Trade and Enterprise Minister Kemi Badenoch – last February 8 and 9 in Rome. Up to now this has been the most important government delegation that has arrived in Italy since the inauguration of the government led by Giorgia Meloni, confirming the desire to establish a closer and more mutually beneficial relationship.