Calenda: “There are areas of overlap between the No Tav and AVS movements. Vannacci? A quasi-fascist, controlled by the Russians”

Rome. The No Tav assault in Val di Susa, the injured officers, the wave of unrest following the death of Abderrahim Fakir in Bologna, the Prime Minister calling on the judiciary to ‘do their utmost’, and PD secretary Elly Schlein urging the government ‘not to exploit the situation’. Is this the end of the calls for unity from both sides? Azione leader Carlo Calenda, “not belonging to either camp”, tells Il Foglio that he finds “these opposing attitudes serious: politicisation – and thus portraying the left as if it were one and the same as the No Tav protesters – and collusion: the belief that compromises can be reached with the antagonists and the violent protesters, such as allowing them space in the 25 April marches or funding associations close to them”. A solution? “The situation is getting worse; we cannot turn a blind eye or think we can reason with the antagonistic forces”. The centre-left leaders have distanced themselves from the violence, albeit belatedly in some cases. “I don’t think Elly Schlein supports the No Tav movement, but I do think there are areas of overlap, for example between AVS and the extreme wing of the Pro Pal movement, where people simply turn a blind eye or think they can reach an agreement. A very serious mistake that the PCI did not make.” Calenda also sees a double communication blunder: “It took 24 hours for Schlein to condemn the violence in Bologna and for Meloni to say a word about Roberto Vannacci’s disgraceful video.” The problem with Vannacci is not just the video. “I believe there is an anti-democratic, fascist-like element that Vannacci represents, one that is no longer even particularly hidden,” says Calenda, alluding to the double-headed axe pendant worn by the general, an ancient symbol of Ordine Nuovo. “I hear some Forza Italia representatives saying: ‘We’ll see.’ We’ll see what, in the face of a fascist controlled by the Russians?” (Rizzini, continued in insert IV)

But even on the left, says Calenda, “when you’re faced with No Tav or Pro Pal fringe groups infiltrated by criminals, you have to isolate them. It’s time to be absolutely tough, just as the PCI was”. Why is the left, heir to the PCI, failing to do this – or failing to do so completely? “The PCI had its own organisation and a sense of seriousness that the PD has lost. It has become a collection of small factions, or at least Schlein’s PD is. But even on the centre-right we certainly do not have a De Gasperi, who never agreed to form an alliance with the MSI, even saying ‘no’ to Pius XII. And Vannacci goes far beyond the MSI: not only is he an avowed fascist, but also, I repeat, a puppet of Putin”. Even in football, the issue has had to be addressed, and the Russian embassy has expressed solidarity with Andrea Pirlo, who is no longer a candidate for the national team’s head coach due to his past collaborations. “Autocracies have realised they can buy off whoever they want in the West, from footballers to politicians – take our friend Matteo Renzi, who was paid at the time to talk about the ‘Saudi Renaissance’, or former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, who was paid by Putin. But Russia is our enemy; it launches cyber-attacks and seeks the destruction of Europe. We cannot allow autocracies to infiltrate us.” Calenda has repeatedly asked Meloni to make public the DIS report on the links between political forces and foreign interference. “I have asked, for example, for light to be shed on the fake social media accounts supporting Vannacci, Di Battista and the pro-Russian far-left. Do we want a democratic pact? Well then, let’s ensure that people backed by autocracies hostile to Europe – or who support them – are excluded from both camps: a security cordon.” Meanwhile, Elly Schlein is reaching out to you, Calenda. “‘Ndo cojo cojo’, as they say in Rome. Amusing, along the lines of: anyone will do. But the problem is what you’re proposing. And it’s clear that Azione cannot align with the M5S: we have nothing in common. Schlein’s only idea is ‘everyone against Meloni’, not ‘how we want to govern Italy’.” That is why Calenda is working on an agreement with the centrist forces: Azione, Pina Picierno with Spazio Pubblico and Luigi Marattin with the Libdems. “We need a force that is moderate in its values but pragmatic in its actions. A force that can dismantle the current system.” How? “By revolutionising Italian politics in a way it hasn’t been for thirty years – that is, by assessing issues on their merits. Do we need nuclear power? Let’s support it. Do we need a minimum wage? Let’s introduce it. Not to mention healthcare: today, half of all specialist consultations are paid for by citizens who would otherwise be unable to afford them. Is this a right-wing or a left-wing issue? And take note: if we do not build the United States of Europe during this term of the European Parliament, Europe risks disintegrating under pressure from the United States, Russia and China.” A vast programme indeed. “This can be achieved through a federal debt of one thousand billion for Defence and Energy, financed by a 10 per cent across-the-board tariff on Chinese goods.” “These are extraordinary times,” says Calenda, “and left-right arguments no longer hold water.” On security, meanwhile, “we need simple measures. Today, an undocumented migrant who commits a crime is given a deportation order, and often that migrant reoffends. We need repatriation centres in every region: under EU law, a migrant who commits a crime can be held in a centre for up to 18 months. First, they are offered voluntary repatriation; then, if they do not accept it, forced repatriation is carried out. But action is only now being taken, and slowly at that. Meanwhile, however, the government is focusing on the criminal responsibility of 14-year-olds, instead of banning social media for under-15s, as in France. We have a cross-party proposal on the table, but Meloni is paralysed on every issue.” For many, on both the right and the left, the parliamentary term is over. “We’re on the brink of an economic crisis, with two wars on our doorstep. When I hear this political posturing – the timetable, the preferences – I think: have we gone mad?”