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EU Commissioner and RAI top management: A sticky August for Meloni
The Italian Prime Minister is wrestling with choices over who to nominate as the next EU Commissioner, and the new Board of Directors of the public media network RAI. Both choices involve wrangling within her coalition, and were complicated by the recent EU rule of law report.
It will not be an August of holidays and relaxation for Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. By 30 August the Italian prime minister must submit nominations to the European Commission for the European executive: a crucial appointment for Meloni. For months she has been aiming for a position of weight for Italy, preferably an economic portfolio, but the match is not a foregone conclusion since her influence and that of her European Conservatives and Reformists group has been reduced in Brussels.
Before that decision, theoretically by Friday, when parliamentary work closes for the summer holidays, the premier must appoint the new top management to public broadcaster RAI. This decision has now become urgent following the announcement on 24 July of RAI president Marinella Soldi’s resignation.
The two apparently discrete decisions are more intertwined than they appear. Firstly by the publication in late July of the European Commission’s report on the rule of law, which put the management of RAI by Italian politics under the magnifying glass. And secondly by the delicate relationship of Meloni with her coalition allies in the government majority, united in Italy but aligned in three different groups in Europe.
The (bumpy) race for the economic portfolio in the EU Commission
Although Italy has not yet formally presented its candidatures in Brussels, the most cited name is that of the current Minister for European Affairs, Raffaele Fitto, former vice-president of the European Conservatives and Reformists group in the European Parliament.
For him – or whoever she chooses – Meloni would like the Cohesion portfolio, the commissioner who will manage one third of the Union’s budget, oversee the Recovery fund and manage the plan to reduce administrative burdens.
But regardless of the candidate, Meloni’s ambitions could founder over recent frictions with Brussels and, in particular, with re-elected European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
The Italian premier first challenged the six recommendations to Italy in a letter and then, in a press conference from Beijing, contained in the Commission’s report on the development of the rule of law in the member states.
‘Dear Ursula’: Meloni’s letter on political interference at RAI
What ired Meloni enough to address a letter personally to von der Leyen from China, where she was on an official visit from 28 to 31 July, was the section on freedom of the press and freedom of expression in Italy, in which Brussels said it was concerned about cases of intimidation of journalists by politicians, the lack of protection of professional secrecy and journalistic sources, the delay in reforming the law on defamation, as well as interference by politicians in RAI.
In her ‘dear Ursula’ letter, Meloni claimed that “the recommendations to Italy do not particularly differ from those of previous years,** however for the first time the content of this document has been distorted for political use by some in an attempt to attack the Italian government”, she wrote, in a thinly veiled reference to the opposition and the newspapers most critical of the right-wing executive.
Then she dwelt on the three points she considered most critical, all concerning RAI and the interference of the political class in the management and editorial line of the public broadcast network, denying bias on the part of her government.
“We have received Meloni’s letter and we are evaluating it,” spokeswoman Anitta Hipper said on 30 July, stressing that the report is the “result” of consultations with the member states themselves and thus individual national governments. Meloni, returning to the issue in the first press point from Beijing on the same day, was keen to specify that the letter was nothing more than a ‘common reflection’ and that relations with the European Commission are not deteriorating.
Meloni’s rise and fall in Brussels
Perhaps so, but the episode certainly does not come at a rosy moment. In less than two months, the President of the Council has seen her newly gained influence in Brussels decline, and there is no doubt that she has had to take a few blows.
In the run-up to the European elections Meloni was courted by both the extreme right and von der Leyen – who had even said she was willing to welcome Fratelli d’Italia into the EPP – and was now considered the post-vote kingmaker. She who, thanks to the success in the polls of the ultra-conservatives, could have moved the Union to the right, and demanded for the members of her group some high office.
But then the extreme right did not break through, the traditional groups in the European parliament were able to re-establish and decide on new appointments. Meloni protested, tried unsuccessfully to influence the decision-making process, and then found herself forced by circumstances to oppose von der Leyen’s re-election, taking Italy out of the European majority for the first time.
According to the premier, all this will have no repercussions on appointments to the European executive: “I am talking to von der Leyen,” Meloni assured from China. But the Financial Times has ascribed recent events as showing ‘signs of subsidence’ in the relationship between Rome and Brussels, saying the choice of commissioner will be a ‘key test’ of Meloni’s reputation in the EU.
ADVERTISEMENTMeloni’s problems do not end there, however. Complicating the political game in Brussels – and in Rome – is the relationship with her government allies, with Lega’s Matteo Salvini trying to corner her in order to steal votes from her on the right. It is also because of these internal tensions within the Italian majority that Meloni could not support her ‘friend Ursula’.
Now she will need the approval of her Lega and Forza Italia coalition partners to propose candidates for the Commission, a situation in which mediation is necessary and, perhaps, also concessions on other dossiers, such as those Rai appointments.
The stalemate on RAI top appointments
The RAI dossier has been on the Prime Minister’s calendar for weeks, but the game has been accelerated by Soldi’s resignation, which came at the worst possible moment. RAI has never been so much in the spotlight since the time of the second Berlusconi government, in Italy and in Europe. Because of the fuss raised by the Brussels rule of law report and the numerous accusations of interference in the editorial line of the public network – now dubbed “TeleMeloni” by opposition and critics.
Several members of the Democratic Party, the 5-Star Movement and the Green Left Alliance criticised the Prime Minister’s ‘irritating’ and ‘victimising’ remarks in her letter to von der Leyen, asking Meloni to appear before the RAI supervisory commission to give explanations. They are now questioning the possible connection of the affair with the appointments of the new board of directors, taking the opportunity to call for a reform of RAI governance.
ADVERTISEMENTOthers considered that the letter indicated the prime minister’s desire to speed up the appointments: addressed more to domestic public opinion than to a European institutional interlocutor, an attempt to counter opposition narrative on bias within RAI and to overcome the stalemate affecting those imminent board appointments.
In fact the coalition remains far off even agreeing on the day to vote on the members of the board of directors, the first of several steps required to arrive at the new command structure of the network.
The League is pushing for a prominent position and may be satisfied
The Chamber of Deputies and the Senate must choose two board members each, two others are appointed by the Council of Ministers on the proposal of the Minister of the Economy and one by RAI employees. After the vote, the new board of directors meets to elect the CEO and indicate the president, which must then be submitted to the Parliamentary Supervisory Commission for a vote.
Meloni’s Fratelli d’Italia would like to close the issue before the summer break, but many in the coalition’s governing majority, especially the League, would like to postpone everything until September. A meeting of the parliamentary group leaders is scheduled for today to set a date for the vote, and according to Ansa, citing internal sources, a centre-right summit is also set to be held to take stock of the dossier.
ADVERTISEMENTThe thorny issue remains the appointment of the new RAI president. According to ANSA, the Italian press agency, Meloni will try to close the circle on the names, starting with the president, who must have the endorsement of two-thirds of the Supervisory Commission with the necessary help, therefore, of part of the opposition.
According to this thesis, Fratelli would accept Simona Agnes (nominated by Forza Italia) as president and Giampaolo Rossi (its own nominee) as managing director, while the League would have a councillor.
Salvini, however, is pushing to nominate the director general and others are convinced that in the end one of the current production directors will take the leadership.
The RAI nomination game is an internal one, but one that could end up weighing on the European front if there is no agreement between the majority parties and the decision-making drags on.
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Global energy markets remain in a state of high alert after several Gulf states suspended oil and gas production following escalating tensions in the region.
Since Saturday’s attacks by the United States and Israel, Tehran has targeted various sites in Israel and across several Gulf countries.
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Initially, these Iranian attacks focused primarily on US military assets, but Gulf states have reported that Iran has since broadened its scope to target civilian infrastructure, including hotels, airports and energy facilities. Iranian officials have publicly denied targeting Gulf energy facilities, however.
The Middle East remains the world’s dominant source of hydrocarbon reserves and a major driver of crude oil and natural gas output.
How much oil and gas does the Middle East have?
Nearly half of the world’s oil reserves and exports come from the Middle East, which contains five of the seven largest oil reserves in the world.
Once refined, crude oil is used to make various products, including petrol, diesel, jet fuel and a wide range of household items such as cleaning products, plastics and even lotions.
After Venezuela, which has 303 billion barrels, Saudi Arabia holds the world’s second-largest proven crude oil reserves, estimated at 267 billion barrels.
The Middle East’s largest oil reserves:
- Saudi Arabia: 267 billion barrels
- Iran: 209 billion barrels
- Iraq: 145 billion barrels
- UAE: 113 billion barrels
- Kuwait: 102 billion barrels
Saudi Arabia is also the world’s top oil exporter with an estimated $187bn of crude in 2024, according to data from the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC).
The Middle East’s top oil exporters:
- Saudi Arabia: $187bn
- UAE: $114bn
- Iraq: $98bn
- Iran: $47bn – largely sold at a discount due to US sanctions
- Kuwait: 29bn
Other Middle Eastern countries with sizeable oil exports include: Oman ($28.9bn), Kuwait ($28.8bn) and Qatar ($21bn).
In addition to crude oil, the Middle East is a global powerhouse for natural gas, accounting for nearly 18 percent of global production and approximately 40 percent of the world’s proven reserves.
Natural gas is primarily used for electricity generation, industrial heating, and in chemicals and fertilisers.
The heart of Middle Eastern gas is a single, massive underwater reservoir called the South Pars/North Dome field. It is the largest gasfield in the world, and it is shared directly between Qatar and Iran.
Gas is transported either through pipelines or by tankers. When using pipelines, the gas is pressurised and moved through steel networks. When pipelines are not feasible, such as across oceans, Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) is used.
To create LNG, the gas is cooled to approximately -162C (-260F), shrinking its volume and allowing it to be safely loaded onto specialised tanker ships for global transport.
To transport oil and gas, tankers from various Gulf states must navigate the narrow waterway known as the Strait of Hormuz. Approximately one-fifth of global oil and gas passes through this strait, primarily heading to major markets in Asia, including China, Japan, South Korea and India, as well as to Europe.
Which energy facilities have been attacked?
Here are the facilities which have recorded damage as of Wednesday:
Saudi Arabia – Ras Tanura oil refinery
On Monday, one of the world’s largest oil refining complexes, the Ras Tanura oil refinery owned by Saudi Aramco, was forced to halt operations after debris from intercepted Iranian drones caused a small fire.
Saudi Aramco is one of the world’s largest companies, with a market capitalisation exceeding $1.7 trillion and revenue of $480bn. Headquartered in Dhahran, in eastern Saudi Arabia, Aramco controls 12 percent of global oil production, with a capacity of more than 12 million barrels per day (bpd).
On Wednesday, Saudi defence officials reported a second drone attempt on the facility but this was successfully intercepted with no damage or disruption to operations reported.
Qatar – Ras Laffan Industrial City LNG facilities
On Monday, Qatar’s Ministry of Defence reported that Iranian drones had targeted an energy facility in Ras Laffan belonging to QatarEnergy, the world’s largest LNG producer.
While no casualties were reported, QatarEnergy suspended the production of LNG and other products at the impacted sites.
QatarEnergy’s 81 million metric tonnes of LNG exports are mostly bound for Asian markets, including China, Japan, India, South Korea, Pakistan and other countries in the region. The halt in production hiked global gas prices to a three-year high this week.
Qatar – Mesaieed Industrial City
Qatar’s Defence Ministry said the country was attacked by a second drone launched from Iran on Monday, targeting a water tank belonging to a power plant in Mesaieed, without reporting any casualties.
On Tuesday, QatarEnergy also stopped production of some downstream products like urea, polymers, methanol, aluminium and others.
UAE – Fujairah and Mussafah oil terminals
On Monday, a fire broke out at Mussafah Fuel Terminal in southwest Abu Dhabi after it was struck by a drone.
On Tuesday, falling debris from a drone interception caused a fire at the Fujairah Oil Terminal along the eastern coast of the United Arab Emirates. No injuries were reported.
Oman – ports of Duqm and Salalah
On Tuesday, multiple Iranian drones struck fuel tanks and a tanker at the port of Duqm, with at least one direct hit on a fuel storage tank, causing an explosion.
On the same day, a drone strike was recorded at the Port of Salalah, which handles fuel and industrial minerals.
Athe Nova – oil tanker
On Monday, the Athe Nova, a Honduran-flagged tanker positioned off the coast of Khor Fakkan, UAE, was struck by Iranian drones as it was transiting the Strait of Hormuz, setting it ablaze. Despite the fire, the vessel managed to exit the chokepoint into the Gulf of Oman, and no casualties were reported.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed responsibility for the strike, identifying the Athe Nova as an “ally of the United States”.
On the same day as the attack, Iran declared the Strait of Hormuz closed, warning that any ship attempting to pass would be “set ablaze”.
Since then, several other tankers have been hit.
Other regional energy disruptions
Although not directly targeted, the following energy sites suspended operations in response to Iranian retaliatory attacks:
Israeli offshore gasfields – Major gas production fields such as Leviathan and Tamar were shut down as a precaution following regional drone and missile launches linked to Iran.
Oil fields in semiautonomous Iraqi Kurdistan – Producers including DNO, Gulf Keystone and Dana Gas halted output as a safety measure amid the escalation.
Rumaila oilfield – Operations at Iraq’s largest oilfield – operated by BP – in southern Iraq were halted on Tuesday as a security precaution due to its proximity to the escalation zone.
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Senior Iranian clerics would have been left “exposed” after an Israeli airstrike hit a meeting place where they were supposed to be convening Tuesday — days after a strike leveled the Tehran compound of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a defense analyst has claimed.
The clerics, members of the Assembly of Experts, had reportedly planned to meet at the location in Qom to deliberate succession plans for Khamenei, who was killed in the strikes, according to The Times of Israel.
“This second strike would be another embarrassment to what has been left of the regime,” Kobi Michael, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies and the Misgav Institute, told Fox News Digital.
“It indicates intelligence dominance and superiority because any movement is detected, meaning they would feel exposed,” Michael added.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in an Israeli airstrike Saturday. (Getty Images)
“As of now, the leadership would feel insecure and hunted, with all of their plans collapsing one after another.”
“They would feel totally isolated and understand that the biggest risk might come from home — from a potential uprising next,” he added.
Israel Defense Forces spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin confirmed that the Israeli Air Force struck the building where senior clerics had planned to assemble, The Times of Israel reported.
KHAMENEI’S DEATH OPENS UNCERTAIN CHAPTER FOR IRAN’S ENTRENCHED THEOCRACY
A general view of Tehran with smoke visible in the distance after explosions were reported in the city, Monday, in Iran. (Contributor/Getty Images)
It remains unclear how many of the 88 members were present at the time of the strike, according to an Israeli defense source cited by the outlet. The second strike on Iran’s leadership comes amid a broader military campaign.
As previously reported by Fox News Digital, U.S. forces have struck more than 1,700 targets across Iran in the first 72 hours of Operation Epic Fury, according to a U.S. Central Command fact sheet.
The campaign is aimed at dismantling Iran’s security apparatus and neutralizing what officials describe as imminent threats.
According to U.S. Central Command, targets have included command-and-control centers, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Joint Headquarters, the IRGC Aerospace Forces headquarters, integrated air defense systems and ballistic missile sites.
FIREBRAND ANTI-AMERICAN CLERIC ALIREZA ARAFI SEEN AS CONTENDER TO REPLACE IRAN’S KHAMENEI
The USS Thomas Hudner fires a Tomahawk land attack missile in support of Operation Epic Fury, Sunday, while at sea. (U.S. Navy/via Getty Images)
“We need strategic patience and determination, and in several weeks most of the job will be accomplished,” Michael added. “Even if the regime does not collapse, Iran will not be like we used to know.
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“I assume that the U.S. and Israel will establish a very robust monitoring mechanism that will enable them to react whenever the regime tries to reconstitute its military capacities again.”
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