The governments are also getting closer on a sensitive issue that has recently caused dissent between Germany and Italy: the reform of the EU debt rule.
(Photo: AP)
Rome It is only a short flying visit: In the morning we went to Rome by government plane, and straight back to Berlin after the meeting with Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi. Nevertheless, the third bilateral trip abroad by Olaf Scholz’s young chancellor is an important sign: After his visits to France and Poland, it shows the importance of German-Italian relations.
They should become even closer in the future under Scholz. Both countries are working on an action plan to deepen the work in many areas. There will also be joint government consultations soon. The plans are not yet concrete, negotiations will now continue at the diplomatic level.
But the direction is clear: Both heads of government want to promote European integration and tackle important joint projects, for example in the area of hydrogen or battery production for e-cars. “The cooperation between our two countries is fundamental for the implementation of these projects,” said Draghi after the meeting in Palazzo Chigi, where Scholz was received with a red carpet and a German anthem.
With a view to the pandemic, Scholz praised the Roman government: “Italy has achieved a very exemplary vaccination quota.” That is also an incentive for Germany. “We also have a general now,” said Scholz, smiling over at Draghi’s desk.
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At the time, it was one of the prime minister’s first acts to hold a military logistics expert responsible for the vaccination campaign – with great success. In Italy today, more than 88 percent of those over 12 have received at least one dose. Before his election as Chancellor, Scholz introduced a new Corona crisis team headed by Major General Carsten Breuer.
Reform of the suspended EU debt rule
The governments are also getting closer on a sensitive issue that has recently sparked disagreement between Germany and Italy: It is about a reform of the currently suspended EU debt rules that Italy and France have repeatedly called for. Italy’s national debt is currently more than 155 percent of economic output – the Maastricht criteria only allow a value of 60 percent.
The annual budget deficit should not actually exceed three percent. Even in 2024, Rome will not achieve this goal either. “There is a convergence of positions,” explained Draghi. The time after the pandemic is urging all EU countries to finance new projects – be it digital change, ecological change or defense. “With all these expenses, new budget rules are needed.”
Scholz doesn’t go that far. “Europe has shown what it can do,” he says – and by that he means the 750 billion euro reconstruction fund, which is also financed from joint debts. The Stability and Growth Pact has shown its flexibility.
“We will continue to work on this basis in the future.” As finance minister, Scholz had already dispelled the image of Germans loyal to austerity in the past few years, which his predecessor in office Wolfgang Schäuble in particular had shaped in Europe.
The Ampel coalition agreement shows that the new government is open to changes to the Stability Pact. They want to make it “simpler and more transparent”, it says there. And even the new Finance Minister Christian Lindner has recently heard something new: Germany must ensure stability. But one is also responsible for ensuring that “this currency area stays together”.
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