Germany, Italy plan energy solidarity deal as they boost ties

BERLIN, Nov 22 (Reuters) – Germany and Italy want to swiftly agree a solidarity deal to boost their energy security, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Wednesday at the countries’ first intergovernmental summit in seven years seeking to strengthen cooperation on a raft of issues.

With Scholz from the centre-left Social Democrats and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni from the rightist Brothers of Italy, the two leaders and their governments make for unlikely allies.

Yet with Europe facing war on its doorstep in Ukraine, worries over irregular migration and a scramble for new sources of energy, the leaders of the euro zone’s first- and third-largest economies have rallied on a number of issues of late.

These include the construction of a pipeline to transport gas and hydrogen between the two countries and approaches to tackling illegal migration.

Scholz told a joint news conference with Meloni that the two countries wanted to expand their cooperation in energy to strengthen their long-term supply security. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year hit its exports to Europe, sparking an energy crisis that countries have been scrambling to overcome and ensure doesn’t happen again by diversifying supply.

“Especially important will be building up the south corridor for gas and hydrogen,” Scholz said, referring to a planned hydrogen-ready pipeline between North Africa and Europe.

“In parallel to this we want to quickly agree a German-Italian gas and solidarity deal,” Scholz said.

Berlin signed such a deal with Paris last year that saw Germany supplying France with more electricity to compensate for setbacks in its nuclear production and France delivering gas to Germany.

In a 31-page action plan, Berlin and Rome also pledged to enhance regular dialogue – for example through meetings of their defence and foreign ministers – and coordinate more closely on key policies in general.

Meloni said the plan took their bilateral cooperation “to a new level”.

“I think this is good news for our peoples, and I also think it is great news for Europe as a whole,” she said.

Still, the fact the document is a plan, and not a treaty, underscores the slightly less close alliance between Germany and Italy compared to each country with France – the euro zone’s second-largest economy.

The two governments also discussed irregular migration, Scholz said.

The German stance on the issue has converged more with the Italian one. It has switched to a tougher line in view of rising arrivals and complaints from local authorities that they cannot deal with the influx.

Scholz has said, for example, he would look closely at Italy’s deal with Albania to build two reception and detention camps there for migrants arriving by sea.

“For us it is naturally interesting to observe these things even if the vicinity of Italy and Albania, which are only separated by a sea, plays very big role,” he said.

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.