Meloni urges EU to treat energy crisis like defence emergency, relax fiscal rules

Published connected 18/05/2026 - 12:15 GMT+2•Updated 12:20

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has urged the European Commission to unbend fiscal rules for households and industries struggling with soaring vigor costs, arguing that vigor information should beryllium treated with the aforesaid urgency arsenic defence spending.

In a missive sent connected Monday to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen seen by Euronews, Meloni said the EU should amusement the aforesaid “political courage” connected vigor arsenic it has connected defence.

“If we rightly see defence to beryllium specified a strategical precedence arsenic to warrant the activation of the National Escape Clause, past we indispensable person the governmental courageousness to recognise that contiguous vigor information is besides a European strategical priority,” reads the missive seen by Euronews.

The entreaty comes amid renewed fears of an vigor daze arsenic tensions escalate successful the Middle East and concerns turn implicit imaginable disruptions to the Strait of Hormuz, a cardinal planetary shipping way for lipid and gas.

Across Europe, governments stay wary of a repetition of the vigor situation that followed Russia’s penetration of Ukraine, which triggered mill shutdowns, soaring ostentation and exigency authorities subsidies.

Meloni argued that the EU cannot inquire citizens to enactment accrued defence spending portion appearing indifferent to the fiscal unit faced by households and businesses.

According to the Italian premier minister, information should not beryllium measured solely successful subject terms, but besides by whether factories tin proceed operating, families tin spend vigor bills and governments tin support economical stability.

At the centre of Rome’s petition is the EU’s National Escape Clause, adopted connected 8 July, which allows subordinate states impermanent fiscal flexibility to boost defence spending nether exceptional circumstances.

Meloni said Brussels had already shown a willingness to loosen fund rules successful effect to Russia’s warfare successful Ukraine and increasing concerns implicit Europe’s subject preparedness. Italy is present seeking akin flexibility for exigency vigor measures.

The premier minister, whose blimpish Brothers of Italy enactment leads the governing coalition, is besides facing uneven nationalist enactment for higher defence spending astatine a clip erstwhile galore voters stay focused connected surviving costs.

“We cannot warrant successful the eyes of our citizens that the EU allows fiscal flexibility for information and defence strictly understood and not to support families, workers and businesses from a caller vigor exigency that risks hitting the existent system hard,” the missive states.

Italy has the second-highest debt-to-GDP ratio successful the EU aft Greece, limiting Rome’s country for large-scale subsidies nether existing fiscal rules.

Meloni besides suggested that a deficiency of greater flexibility connected vigor costs could complicate Italy’s enactment for the EU’s Security Action for Europe (SAFE) programme, the bloc’s €150 cardinal associated borrowing mechanics aimed astatine strengthening defence capabilities.

SAFE is intended to assistance subordinate states boost subject concern and conscionable much ambitious NATO spending targets.

“In the lack of this indispensable governmental coherence, it would beryllium precise hard for the Italian authorities to explicate to the nationalist a imaginable recourse to the SAFE programme nether the conditions presently envisaged,” Meloni wrote.

Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto said connected 14 May that helium had requested clarification from the Treasury connected whether Italy would enactment successful the EU weapons procurement fund, noting that Rome had until the extremity of the period to determine whether to articulation the scheme.