The first "international" meeting of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was with the President of the French Republic Emmanuel Jean-Michel Frédéric Macron.
"Cordial and fruitful discussion, lasting over an hour, between the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and the French President Emmanuel Macron. During the meeting, albeit informal, all the main European dossiers were discussed: the need to give quick answers and common on expensive energy, support for Ukraine, the difficult economic situation, the management of migratory flows. The presidents of Italy and France agreed on the desire to continue with a collaboration on the great common challenges at European level and in respect of each other's national interests " - was the note issued by Palazzo Chigi.
Regarding the respect of "national interests", Giorgia Meloni will surely have informed the visiting guest that from now on Italy could have them too and want to defend them. Not just in words.
Wanting to pay attention to the pitiful state of the main instrument of protection of national sovereignty, shouldn't we start by giving a less equivocal name to the Ministry of Defense, given that many others have been "revised" with the new government?
"Defense" can concern many areas: environment, health, crime, garbage, show business ... Before some political genius swaps soldiers for handymen to find inappropriate activities, perhaps calling them "dual" one day, we want to give clarity to those who are enlist?
Today we must collect pieces and give shape to something that certainly exists in hearts but not in reality.
Paris changed the skin of the Ministry of Defense in 2017 (in French history, it was not the first time: also in 1947, 1958 and 1973) transforming it into the "Ministry of the Armed Forces".
For many years we have been suggesting, if we really want to continue a journey that began almost two centuries ago (without France Italy would never have been born) and consolidated by Treaty of the Quirinale last year, to take an example from the "cousins", where appropriate (therefore cooking excluded). In the military, in many respects, the French are to be emulated!
Is the economic-diplomatic influence of France infinitely greater than that of Italy by chance? In Paris they know that only embarrassed smiles can be pulled off with crap and cialtronesque rhetoric.
We must regenerate and strengthen, not only materially, the National Defense. There is a need to raise morale and remember the reason for existing for over 200.000 fellow citizens, military and civilians. We must therefore re-explain to the country why it has the Armed Forces. The military must be reminded that work is no longer lulling oneself in peace but concretizing skills and activities that serve to face or avoid wars.
This is why we should try to learn from those who, after abusing us (see Libya), shake our hand and claim to be friends.
Looking at the definition of the ministry published on the French government website (photo), however, we realize that our appeals to the political leaders of the past were probably misunderstood: they fell on the wrong paragraph!
We were referring to the first and not "literally" to the second ...
Photo: US DoD / Italian Army / Ministère des Armées
