Juncker invites ‘German-speaking’ countries not to repeat the Greek mistake with Italy and avoid giving lessons to Rome

Deutsche Welle and The Guardian reported that since the new Italian government assumed power, EU President Jean-Claude Juncker seems to have taken a position of respectful distance.

In a stark warning to ‘Germany’ he says he does not want to see a repeat of the situation with Greece. When asked on Saturday about Italy’s massive debt problems and the new government’s plans to increase public spending, he said that he was “not at all in favour of giving lessons to Rome. That was what happened too much with Greece, especially by the German-speaking countries.” Juncker said Greece had been hurt by this approach, with “the dignity of the Greek people trodden under foot” when left-wing Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras took office in 2015. “That must not happen again in the present case with Italy,” he said. “I absolutely do not want to get involved in questions of domestic Italian politics.”

In an interview with German news service RedaktionsNetzwerk, Juncker admitted his “concern” about the recent developments in Italy, but insisted that the recent turmoil in the financial markets in response to the new government had been “irrational” and should not be seen as a guide to how the political story will unfold in Rome.

“I think very highly of President Mattarella, but I have not spoken to him during this crisis. I have not interfered, although I have been tempted to,” Juncker said. “I do not want to feed the accusations spread by the populists that we are sitting in Brussels meddling in Italy’s affairs. I am certain the Italians have a keen sense of what is good for their country. They will sort it out.” But he went on: “By keeping out of it, I’m not helping. By getting involved, I’m not helping. I am caught between a rock and a hard place.”