DistantNews
Support us
🇮🇹 Italy /Elections & Politics

AfD triumph in Saxony-Anhalt splits Italy’s government, as Salvini celebrates and Tajani calls it bad news

From Corriere della Sera · () Italian

Translated from Italian and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Analysis Named sources Context piece
  • Matteo Salvini celebrated the Alternative for Germany’s victory in Saxony-Anhalt as evidence of demand for change, security and jobs.
  • Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani called the result “terrible news,” saying the AfD conflicts with the liberal and Western values supported by Forza Italia.
  • Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s camp sought a middle position, arguing that the result signals a need for a more responsive European Union but not for extremism or racism.

The AfD’s triumph in Saxony-Anhalt has exposed a sharp split inside Italy’s governing majority. Matteo Salvini celebrated the German far-right party’s result, while Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani described it as “terrible news.”

Terrible news, because it is a political force opposed to the liberal and Western values that Forza Italia identifies with, and it is news that we hope will be a local exception.

· Antonio TajaniItaly’s foreign minister rejected Salvini’s celebration of the AfD result.

Salvini congratulated AfD leader Alice Weidel and the party on what he called a spectacular victory. He said the result showed a strong demand for change, security and jobs, and dismissed warnings from the left about fear and danger. “Fear? Terror? Danger? No, it is called democracy. Another Europe is possible,” Salvini wrote.

Tajani took the opposite view. He said the result was “terrible news” because the AfD is opposed to the liberal and Western values embraced by Forza Italia. He expressed hope that the outcome would remain a local exception. Forza Italia belongs to the European People’s Party, whose central political force is Germany’s Christian Democratic Union, which suffered a major defeat in the vote.

Congratulations to our friend Alice Weidel and the entire AfD on the triumph in Saxony-Anhalt! A spectacular success that highlights the strong demand for change, security and jobs.

· Matteo SalviniSalvini celebrated the AfD’s result and linked it to voter demands.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni remained officially silent, but people working in her office argued against celebrating the AfD. Their assessment was that Europe did not need extremism, racism or such solutions. At the same time, they said the vote revealed dissatisfaction that European institutions should address.

Fear? Terror? Danger? No, it is called democracy. Another Europe is possible.

· Matteo SalviniHe dismissed criticism of the AfD and argued for political change in Europe.

The position associated with Meloni’s office separates the demand from the proposed instrument. Like Salvini, it calls for a change in the European Union, but it rejects using the AfD to deliver it. The office argued for a less technocratic EU focused more closely on issues such as gas prices and migration, with faster decisions and larger, less bureaucratic plans affecting citizens’ everyday lives. The article presents this as closer to Meloni’s established demands than Salvini’s endorsement of the German party.

Europe certainly does not need extremism or racism or this kind of solution.

· Staff working with Giorgia MeloniThe prime minister’s camp rejected the AfD as the instrument for responding to voter dissatisfaction.
About this summary

Originally published by Corriere della Sera in Italian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

More Stories

From Our Blog