MOSCOW, June 20 Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is skeptical about the possible appointment of Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas to the post of head of EU diplomacy, which is currently occupied by Spanish politician Josep Borrell, reports the Euractiv portal, citing sources from Meloni's Brothers of Italy party.
Earlier, the Belgian publication Soir reported that Callas was mentioned among possible contenders for the post of EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, which is currently occupied by Borrell. In addition to Callas, the publication listed former Prime Minister and current Foreign Minister of Luxembourg Xavier Bettel, Prime Minister of Belgium Alexander de Croo and current head of the European Council Charles Michel as contenders.
«Sources from the Brothers of Italy party in Brussels suggest that Meloni may be particularly skeptical about Callas's appointment as EU high representative for foreign affairs,» the material says.
According to the portal's interlocutors, the Italian side has no personal objections to her appointment. However, they believe Callas's appointment as head of EU diplomacy will give her disproportionate weight, and the Renewing Europe group in the European Parliament, they say, will soon lose its position as the third largest group in parliament, having recently been defeated in elections.
At the same time, analysts, as the portal notes, say that Meloni’s skeptical attitude may be connected with something else.
“It may be reluctant to delegate foreign policy responsibilities to the Baltic countries, fearing that their attention will be too focused on the East and may overshadow the problems of the Mediterranean and migration,” the material says.