Germany’s Scholz and Italy’s Meloni make for unlikely partners at the summit.

At an intergovernmental conference that will take place in Berlin on Wednesday, the first of its kind in seven years, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will agree to enhance collaboration on subjects ranging from energy to defense, according to sources inside the German and Italian governments.

These two political parties represent the two leaders and their respective administrations, Scholz of the center-left Social Democrats and Meloni of the rightist Brothers of Italy.
However, in recent months, the leaders of the first- and third-largest economies in the euro zone have come together on several topics. This is because Europe is currently confronting a conflict on its borders in Ukraine, concerns about illegal migration, and a hunt for new energy sources.

Among these are building a pipeline that will carry gas and hydrogen back and forth between the two nations and other strategies to combat illegal immigration.

Germany’s position on illegal immigration is becoming increasingly similar to that of Italy. In light of the increasing number of refugees and the assertions made by local authorities that they are unable to cope with the influx, it has adopted a more hardline position.

Scholz has indicated that he intends to examine the contract that Italy has struck with Albania to construct two reception and detention centers in that country for migrants who arrive in Albania by sea.

According to Reuters, migration is not a significant focus of the 31-page action plan that Scholz and Meloni will sign on Wednesday. Instead, the plan emphasizes that the two administrations should continue communicating with one another over the issue.

In the plan, Berlin and Rome commit to increasing the frequency of their conversations by holding meetings between their ministries of defense and foreign affairs and collaborating more closely on essential topics in general.

The fact that the document in question is a plan and not a treaty highlights the slightly less intimate alliance between Germany and Italy compared to each country’s relationship with France, which has the second-largest economy in the eurozone.

A business meeting between Germany and Italy will occur the day before Wednesday’s summit. Scholz and Meloni will phone in individually to a meeting of G20 leaders to put an end to India’s chairmanship of the organization that represents the 20 most powerful nations on the globe.

After holding a news conference in the evening, the two premiers will have a meal together to discuss business. The departure of the governmental delegation representing Italy is scheduled for this evening.