Will Putin benefit from Italian populist parties' Kremlin leanings?

The two populist parties that won big electoral upsets in Italy’s national election have close ideological ties to the Kremlin and could shift foreign policy in Italy in favour of the Russian president, Vladimir Putin.

Both the Five Star Movement (M5S) and the League – previously known as the Northern League – have raised the possibility of abandoning Nato, called for ending sanctions on Russia they say have hurt the Italian economy, and have been supportive of Russia’s campaign in Syria.

Previous remarks along these lines were not central to the parties’ election campaigns, but they signal a departure from Italy’s traditionally strong support for Nato and the US.

Matteo Salvini, the head of the League, has made several trips to Moscow, including one visit weeks before the 2016 constitutional referendum he staunchly opposed. The “no” vote ultimately won the contest, marking a major defeat for the then-prime minister, Matteo Renzi, the head of the Democratic party and close ally of former president Barack Obama.

Salvini denied receiving money from the Kremlin after he was asked by journalists in 2014 if the League had received any cash from Russia, as his ideological partner, Marine Le Pen of the National Front, did in France.

Source: theguardian