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In three years at Palazzo Chigi, Giorgia Meloni has reshaped Italy’s international image: more assertive in the Mediterranean, a swing player in Europe, a political bridge to Washington, and the architect of an Africa strategy aimed at energy security, development, and control of migration flows. The path hasn’t been linear — fiscal constraints and structural weaknesses remain — but the trajectory is clear: Rome is a political hub again.
A Leadership Profile: Stability, Pragmatism, Agenda
Three years after the vote, Meloni has consolidated domestic primacy and a recognizable external posture: conservative in values, pragmatic on European and Atlantic dossiers. She has tended to favor stability over shock therapy: gradual deficit reduction, caution on the public finances, and attention to industry and manufacturing (even as global headwinds persist).
The G7 in Puglia: Italy’s Direction of Travel
The Apulia summit (13–15 June 2024) was the showcase for the “Meloni doctrine”: support for Ukraine — including through innovative financial tools — deeper energy cooperation with Africa, and a defense of the rules-based international order. Beyond communiqués, Italy used the presidency to embed a “wider Mediterranean” agenda, signaling that European security also runs through the South.
The Mattei Plan: A Compass for Africa
Launched at the Italy–Africa summit (28–29 January 2024), the Mattei Plan has become the long-term framework for Italy’s presence on the continent: a “partnership, not charity” approach with projects in energy, water, agriculture, education and health, leveraging public–private partnerships. Over time, Rome broadened the target countries and engaged national champions (from dual-use aerospace to agritech) to anchor tangible projects. The strategic idea is simple but ambitious: development as a lever to reduce the drivers of irregular migration while building reliable energy and supply links with Europe.
Migration: From “Externalization” to an Italian Model Others Study
Here the discontinuity has been clearest. The Italy–Albania arrangement (announced November 2023 and adjusted in 2025) tested processing outside EU territory — facilities under Italian jurisdiction, accelerated procedures, and, following judicial feedback, an evolution toward return hubs. Innovative and controversial, the scheme sparked legal scrutiny that the government has defended politically and in court.
Whatever the litigation, one political fact stands out: the EU and several member states have studied — and in part adapted — Italy’s approach, within a broader European reform emphasizing external borders and agreements with third countries (from Tunisia and Egypt to Jordan and Lebanon). Even outside the EU, London sought alignment on operational tools. Differences remain (e.g., the UK’s Rwanda plan), but the “Italian method” has entered Europe’s policy toolbox.
Central in Europe: From the Ballot Box to the Dossiers
The 2024 European elections certified the weight of Fratelli d’Italia and the Conservative family (ECR), translating into greater negotiating agility in Brussels and Strasbourg. Relations with the von der Leyen Commission have been at times competitive, yet Rome has repeatedly played kingmaker on migration, energy and budget files. Think tanks now widely frame Italy’s priorities as threefold: managing migration flows, securing reliable energy partnerships, and containing malign external interference — a strategy of “southern strategic depth” with Italy as pilot fish nudging the EU along lines aligned to national interest.
Atreju, the Global “Showcase”: Musk, Sunak, Rama
Atreju’s evolution from party festival to global stage signals the political magnetism the government has built. In December 2023, Elon Musk and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak took the stage; Edi Rama — a key partner on the Albania dossier — also appeared. These weren’t mere photo-ops: real discussions on demographics, AI, digital regulation and migration unfolded. Sunak’s interventions in Rome helped set a trans-Channel tone on borders, while the axis with Tirana became a policy laboratory — legal frictions included — alongside practical infrastructure cooperation across the Adriatic. Atreju projected an Italy that invites and networks.
The Atlantic Channel: A “Special Relationship” with Trump
Following the 2024 US election and President Donald J. Trump’s return to the White House, Meloni cultivated a direct relationship with Washington, rapidly becoming one of the most listened-to European leaders there in the new phase. High-level meetings marked a personal and political understanding useful on sensitive dossiers (tariffs, Ukraine, the Mediterranean). The balancing act is delicate — especially on trade and Ukraine — but it has afforded Italy a bridge role between Washington and Brussels, reducing the risk of a constant transatlantic tug-of-war.
How the Markets See Us: The Ratings Verdict
Perhaps the most tangible “stability premium” has come from sovereign ratings. Through 2025, agencies acknowledged political continuity and fiscal prudence with upgrades and positive outlook shifts. While growth remains modest and productivity flat, markets increasingly price in Italy’s steadier governance and budget discipline — scarcity goods in a politically turbulent Europe.
Limits, Critiques, Open Challenges
The Meloni agenda has triggered resistance on judicial and civil fronts, especially on migration policies (court rulings on “safe countries” and extraterritorial processing). The Mattei Plan’s critics ask for stronger governance, measurable KPIs and safeguards. At home, long-standing knots remain: demographics, real wages, productivity, and STEM education. Still, the political shift is undeniable: Italy isn’t merely reacting to events; it proposes frameworks, leads negotiations, and builds coalitions (from G7 actions against smugglers to EU–North Africa partnerships and trilaterals like Italy–UK–Albania). It is a return to proactive foreign policy, connecting national interests to European ones.
“Best Practices” Others Are Studying
Italy’s migration model — legally anchored externalization, deals with partner states, deterrence and returns — has prompted emulation or adaptation across several capitals, inside and beyond the EU. Concepts such as outsourcing parts of the post-denial phase and establishing return hubs have entered mainstream European debate. No model is plug-and-play, outcomes depend on jurisprudence and administrative capacity — but after years of narrative subordination, Italy is setting the agenda and others are measuring themselves against it.
Italy in the Middle East Conflict
Over these three years, Rome has carved out a clear posture on the region’s most volatile file: Gaza–Israel–Lebanon–the Red Sea. The line rests on three pillars: hands-on humanitarian action, deterrence and protection of sea lanes, and diplomacy for a sustainable peace grounded in two peoples, two States.
Principles and political messaging. Since autumn 2023, Italy has defended Israel’s right to exist and live in security — and thus to defend itself from terrorism — while insisting on a durable ceasefire, release of hostages, and a credible political horizon for Palestinians. In 2024–2025, Palazzo Chigi and the Foreign Ministry reaffirmed support for the two-state solution and for respect of international humanitarian law, pairing words with direct relief and medical care for Gaza’s civilians.
Reception and humanitarian corridors for Palestinians. Italy has matched principle with tools: Air Force medical flights transferring wounded children and the sick — together with their families — to Italy; treatment within the national health service; and humanitarian corridors with civil-society partners (such as the Community of Sant’Egidio), enabling safe entry and family reunification for Palestinian refugees.
The “Vulcano” and the medical bridge. A visible symbol is the hospital ship ITS Vulcano, with operating room, CT scanner and intensive care, deployed off the crisis area to treat the wounded — especially minors — and to serve as a forward medical hub coordinated with Egyptian authorities and international agencies. Deployment began in November 2023 and continued with subsequent missions.
Maritime security and deterrence in the Red Sea. To contain regional spillover, Rome backed — and participated in — the EU mission EUNAVFOR Aspides to safeguard freedom of navigation from Houthi attacks. The destroyer Caio Duilio intercepted and downed drones on multiple occasions, helping shield Europe’s energy and trade routes. The stance is defensive yet determined, linking maritime security to Europe’s economic resilience.
The conflict’s northern front: Lebanon. Italy remains a pillar of UNIFIL in Southern Lebanon — with over 1,100 blue helmets — and has pressed in international forums to bolster the mission as a brake on escalation with Hezbollah. Italy’s continuous presence on the ground and its diplomatic push to renew and strengthen the mandate were consistent through 2024–2025.
Palestinian self-determination and guarantees for Israel. In 2025, Rome also clarified that formal recognition of a State of Palestine is a shared political objective within a European framework, tied to security conditions (hostage releases, removal of Hamas from Gaza’s governance) and to a serious negotiating process that secures peace and security for Israel and real self-determination for the Palestinians. This is the Italian synthesis: security and rights, together.
Conclusion: Italy, Necessary Again
Three years ago, many portrayed Italy as a fragile actor among giants: high debt, low growth, little say. Today — with all the constraints acknowledged — Rome is leading along at least three decisive axes for Europe: the Mediterranean (migration and security), energy (reliable supplies and African partnerships), and the Atlantic bridge (translating European interests in Washington). Ratings agencies have recognized stability; opponents often concede the statecraft; allies, increasingly, follow.
And there is the Middle East, where Italy has shown a balanced but effective posture: building humanitarian corridors, treating Gaza’s children, defending navigation, standing firm in UNIFIL, reaffirming Israel’s right to live in peace and the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination. This is not a return to empty grandeur but to a useful centrality — one that lowers risks for families, gives businesses a heading, protects borders, and makes Italy count where decisions are made. In a fracturing world, to be central is to be needed. Today, across the wider Mediterranean and in Europe, Italy has become exactly that again: a necessary nation.