Claudio Borghi, a senator from the far-right League in the governing coalition and a critic of high defense spending, said: “It is politically difficult to explain that you can spend on tanks and not on [helping with] bills.”
Meloni concedes there needs to be a balance in spending, but she also insists Rome cannot simply row back on military commitments.
“The truth is that if you don’t know how to defend yourself, if you ask someone else to guarantee your security, you’ll pay for it in terms of autonomy, in terms of sovereignty, in terms of the ability to defend your national interests,” she said in a speech to Italy’s main business federation this week. “Defense spending is the price of freedom, and I want Italy to be a free nation.”
Cash crunch
Meloni, who has been in office for an unusually stable four years, suddenly looks vulnerable.
The almost €200 billion post-pandemic recovery program that helped sustain growth is nearing its end, productivity is weak and public finances are under renewed scrutiny from Brussels.
This economic malaise comes as her political star is also waning. A failed justice referendum exposed new political weaknesses, and previously despondent opposition parties have now started to believe they could have a chance against her in 2027.