Italian Puzzle
The anti-establishment coalition of Lega Party and the Five Star Movement (M5S) has accused President Sergio Mattarella of betraying the constitution and demanded early elections.
The move came after the resignation of Italy's PM-designate Giuseppe Conte, who gave up his bid to form a government following Mattarella's decision to veto his pick for the next economy minister.
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Sputnik cited sources as saying that a few days before Conte's resignation, President of the European Parliament Antonio Tajani was officially informed about Italy's intention to block the extension of the anti-Russian sanctions at the next EU summit in July 2018.
Lega Party and the Five Star Movement also discussed the resumption of friendly ties with Moscow and the return of Italian goods to the Russian market, something which was finally disrupted by Matarella saying "no" to the coalition government.
EU Loses Lega Party's Trust
In an interview with Sputnik, Stefano Valdeghamberi, a member of the Venice Regional Parliament, confirmed that Lega Party head Matteo Salvini was determined to uphold his program before the European power structures.
According to Valdeghamberi, the new government did not want to "resignedly accept what the EU is imposing", especially given that Italy remains an "important donor" to the EU's finances.
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He argued that the EU is losing Lega Party' trust because the bloc inefficiently defends European economic interests in disputes with the United States.
"By taking political and commercial decisions against its own interests, Brussels continues to signal that it is unable to play an independent role in the global competition. The resignation of Conte's government, which has not even started to work, looks like a preventive blow by the EU in relation to an uncompromising opponent," Valdeghamberi underlined.
Meanwhile, Mattarella's opponents have accused him of "disrespect for direct democracy" amid speculation that the irritation of voters could lead to a new victory for supporters of Rome's rapprochement with Russia.
Supporters of Better Ties With Russia May Win New Elections
Lega Party and the Five Star Movement, in turn, continue to call on Mattarella to step down with the July 2018 EU summit approaching.
Under the Italian legislation, the country's MPs may spend eight months to address the forced resignation of the president.
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At the same time, speculation is rife that the government appointed by the president has no chance of being approved by the parliament: in addition to the M5S and Lega Party, a spate of other political forces support rapprochement with Russia.
"In particular, we are talking about such parties as the Brothers of Italy or Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia, which also stand for the abolition of the anti-Russian sanctions, " Maurizio Marrone, Professor of Law at Turin University, told Sputnik.
"As for President Mattarella, his main concern is to preserve the country in the EU and the Eurozone. It is worth noting that he was elected the president when [the country's] Democratic Party prevailed in parliament, and that the party's current position does not differ from that of the US Democratic Party," Marrone concluded.
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With the snap elections expected in Italy already on July 29, opinion polls show that Lega Party and the M5S retain voters' support and have every chance to repeat the success of the March elections, when the M5S obtained more than 32 percent of the vote and the center-right coalition, including Lega, got 37 percent.
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