An opinion piece in the
international edition of Monday's Financial Times warns about
"Italy's political threat to the EU" with the March 4 general
election.
"No matter what happens on March 4, tensions between the new
government and EU are assured," reads the article by columnist
Wolfang Munchau.
The piece looks at the likelihood of the election result
being inconclusive, which could lead to Premier Paolo Gentiloni
being reappointed.
But Munchau also highlights the possibility of a government
being formed by the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement (M5S) and
the rightwing, anti-migrant League of Matteo Salvini, which is
currently part of the centre right alliance along with Silvio
Berlusconi's Forza Italia (FI).
He says that both parties have a lot in common, including
their Euroskepticism, their desire to see relations with Russian
President Vladimir Putin improve and their backing for tax cuts.
"A Five Star/Lega alliance would almost certainly caused a
collective heart attack among international investors," he says.
"The reality would probably be less extreme," he added,
saying both groups have toned down their rhetoric against the
euro.
Munchau concludes, however, that the main worry is that none
of the big parties want to tackle a serious discussion about
reforms.
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