Salvini-Led Right-Wing Group May Become 3rd Largest in EU Parl't - Wilders

16:24 GMT, 18 May 2019

MILAN (Sputnik) - The pan-European alliance of the right-wing parties built by Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Lega party's leader Matteo Salvini can become the third biggest force in the European Parliament, leader of the Party for Freedom of the Netherlands Geert Wilders told Sputnik.

Sputnik

"We have to wait for the elections but I am sure we can be for the first time even the third biggest political group in the parliament. We are already more than 10 parties, and we want to work together," Geert Wilders said.

Salvini is holding a major rally in Milan on Saturday ahead of the approaching EU elections, set for the next week. He is joined by 11 European parties' representatives with Wilders, French National Rally's leader Marine Le Pen and German Alternative for Germany's (AfD) co-leader Jorg Meuthen among them.

The event is also attended by other members of the alliance: Bulgarian Will party, Slovak We Are Family party, Czech Freedom and Direct Democracy party, Estonian Conservative People's Party of Estonia, Belgian Flemish Interest party, Danish People's Party, the Finns Party, and Freedom Party of Austria.

Italian Journo Outlines Reasons Behind Salvini's Rise as EU's Right-Wing Leader

18 May 2019, 13:07 GMT

According to the latest Politico projection, Salvini's alliance may gain 70 seats in the European Parliament and hence become the fourth largest group in the body. On 14 May, Europe Elects portal assumed that the alliance might get even 82 seats.

Salvini's pan-European alliance was launched in April and is called the European Alliance of People and Nations (EAPN).

From 23-26 May, the European Union will hold elections to its parliament. The new composition of the European Commission and its head will be determined based on the results of the vote.