New Delhi: The prime minister, Narendra Modi, on Friday congratulated his Italian counterpart, Giorgia Meloni, after she became Italy’s longest continuously serving prime minister in the country’s postwar republican period. Her government completed 1,413 consecutive days in office on September 4, surpassing the previous record of 1,412 days held by Silvio Berlusconi’s second administration.
Calling Meloni his “friend”, Modi said the milestone reflected the trust and confidence of the Italian people in her leadership. He also said her friendship had been instrumental in strengthening the India-Italy Special Strategic Partnership, giving the congratulatory message a bilateral dimension at a time when the two countries have expanded cooperation in defence, trade, technology and critical minerals.
Meloni later thanked Modi for his message and friendship, saying relations between India and Italy were “stronger than ever”. She also referred to the special strategic partnership established by the two countries during Modi’s visit to Rome earlier this year.
Meloni breaks postwar longevity record
Meloni was sworn in as Italy’s prime minister on October 22, 2022, becoming the first woman to hold the office. The leader of the Brothers of Italy party has headed the same coalition government continuously since then, an unusually long period of political stability by Italian postwar standards.
Her 1,413th day in office took her government past Berlusconi’s second administration, which governed from June 2001 to April 2005 for 1,412 days. The distinction is important: Meloni has become the longest continuously serving prime minister of Italy’s postwar republican era, but she is not Italy’s longest serving prime minister when separate terms or earlier periods of the country’s political history are counted.
Meloni marked the milestone by focusing on political stability rather than the record itself. She said stability should be viewed as a condition that allows governments to plan, take decisions and maintain commitments rather than merely as a record to be celebrated.
What it means for India-Italy ties
Modi’s reference to the special strategic partnership follows his official visit to Italy on May 19-20, when he held talks with Meloni in Rome. The two leaders agreed on May 20 to elevate the existing India-Italy Strategic Partnership to a “special” strategic partnership and establish a more structured mechanism for regular high-level engagement.
The agreements reached during the visit focused on areas where bilateral cooperation has expanded in recent years. India and Italy set a target of increasing bilateral trade to €20 billion by 2029, signed an agreement on critical minerals and adopted a defence industrial roadmap covering technological cooperation, co-production and co-development.
The roadmap identified areas including helicopters, naval platforms, marine armament and electronic warfare. The two sides also agreed to deepen cooperation in space, semiconductors, artificial intelligence, clean technologies and resilient supply chains, while expanding links between universities, researchers and businesses.
The latest exchange of congratulations also has a reciprocal element. In June, Meloni congratulated Modi after he completed 4,399 consecutive days as an elected prime minister, surpassing Jawaharlal Nehru’s 4,398 days calculated from India’s first general election in 1952.
Meloni referred at the time to their meeting in Rome and the newly established special strategic partnership. The two messages, separated by less than three months, have therefore coincided with an effort by New Delhi and Rome to give their bilateral relationship a more structured economic, technological and security framework.
Why Meloni’s record is significant
Meloni’s longevity stands out because Italy has historically experienced frequent changes of government. Reuters reported that the country has had 68 governments and 31 prime ministers since becoming a republic in 1946, with administrations lasting roughly 14 months on average.
Italian governments can fall or be reconstituted even without an immediate general election, contributing to repeated changes in cabinets and coalitions. Against that background, Meloni’s ability to keep the same coalition in office since October 2022 represents an extended period of continuity.
Her government is backed principally by Brothers of Italy, the League and Forza Italia. While disagreements have emerged within the coalition on domestic and foreign policy issues, it has remained intact, with the next parliamentary election expected by 2027 unless an early vote is called.