Meloni will present her Mattei Plan for Africa in detail at Italy-Africa summit in October
The Mattei Plan for Africa, for cooperation on Energy and curbing migration flows, is being developed by the Meloni government in Italy, in consultation with ENI, the Italian energy company, and African governments. In the Spring, Italian PM Meloni began a series of official visits to Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Somalia, and she is also interested in Angola, Mozambique, Republic of Congo, Burundi, Mauritania, Niger (at least as of last Spring), and probably others.
She says she will make Italy “an energy hub for Europe” (she is especially interested in natural gas) through cooperation with African partners. An MP of the Fratelli d’Italia, Marco Osnato, says the plan will be “giving back to Africa its dignity” through the development of its resources. (ENI has some recent broken promises in Africa, however, the English-language press is quick to point out.)
Her interests in energy deals go beyond Africa to Southwest Asia and Central Asia.
Italy has a history of imperial ventures in Africa including conquest of at least Libya, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Somalia. And today, Meloni has one foot firmly planted in the Atlanticist camp. But, she also cultivates the Vatican. (When Father Antonio Spadaro presented his book, The Atlas of Francis: Vatican and International Politics, in March, she was one of the speakers.) And she does hate Macron and the French.
https://www.iai.it/en/pubblicazioni/giorgia-melonis-foreign-policy-and-mattei-plan-africa
July 23:
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