Giorgia Meloni sworn in as Italy's new Prime Minister

• Italy Meloni accepts President Mattarella's commission to form a Government in Italy

The leader of the far-right Brothers of Italy,

, has been sworn in as the new prime minister, the first woman to hold that position in the country's history, in an official ceremony before the head of state,

.

"I swear to be faithful to the Republic, to loyally comply with the Constitution and the laws and to exercise my mandate and my functions in the exclusive interest of the nation," she pronounced before the head of state, in the Hall of Festivities of the Roman Quirinal Palace .

Then the rest of his 24 ministers did so, beginning with his two vice presidents,

and

, respective exponents of the far-right Liga and the conservative Forza Italia, the other two parties of the right-wing coalition that won the elections on 25 of September.

And this Sunday at the Quirinal Palace in Rome, the transfer of powers between

and Giorgia Meloni and the first meeting of the council of ministers at the Chigi Palace, the seat of government, will take place.

Meloni, whose post-fascist Brothers of Italy party won a historic victory in the September 25 legislative elections, was officially named prime minister on Friday.

The 45-year-old Roman woman managed to "demonize" her party to gain power exactly

.

Thanks to his coalition with the League, Matteo Salvini's far-right and anti-immigration party, and

's declining Forza Italia , Meloni will have an absolute majority in both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.

, concerned about the coming to power of a founding country of the European Union with the most right-wing and eurosceptic government since 1946.

The appointment as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Deputy Prime Minister of

, former President of the European Parliament and member of Forza Italia, was celebrated by the President of the European People's Party, the German Manfred Weber, as a "guarantee of a pro-European and Atlanticist Italy".

Another nod to Brussels was the appointment of

, representative of the moderate wing of the League and minister with Mario Draghi, at the head of the crucial Economy folder.

Berlusconi and Putin

Matteo Salvini also received the post of deputy prime minister, but he will have to settle for the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport instead of the Interior he wanted.

At a time of difficulties for the third largest economy in the euro zone due to the energy crisis and inflation, widespread in Europe, Meloni's task seems complicated, especially to preserve the unity of a coalition that is already showing fissures.

Salvini and Berlusconi reluctantly accept the authority of Meloni, whose party won 26% of the vote against just 9% for the League and 8% for Forza Italia.

The media picked up multiple confrontations between the three leaders over the distribution of positions in Parliament and the government.

Meloni, Atlanticist and in favor of supporting Ukraine against Russia, had to deal this week with controversial statements by Berlusconi, who said he had "resumed" contacts with Russian President Vladimir Putin and blamed kyiv for the war.

Meloni felt compelled to clarify on Wednesday that Italy "is fully a part and with its head held high" in the EU and NATO.

economic challenges

Talented speaker, this conservative Christian, hostile to LGTB + rights and with the motto

.

Her government will have to focus first and foremost on the many challenges, especially economic ones, that lie ahead of her.

Inflation in the peninsular country increased by 8.9% year-on-year in September and the economy may enter a technical recession next year, just like Germany.

But Rome's room for maneuver is limited by a

, the highest proportion in the euro zone after Greece.

The notoriously eurosceptic prime minister has given up trying to push for an exit from the euro zone, but

.

Italian growth will also depend on the nearly 200 billion euros (about 195 billion dollars) of subsidies and loans agreed by the EU in the framework of its post-pandemic recovery fund.

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• Italy

• Giorgia Meloni

• Matteo Salvini

• mario draghi