Italian spy chief’s sudden resignation described as ‘seismic development’

THE SUDDEN RESIGNATION OF Italy’s spy chief last week was described by some news outlets as a “seismic development” in the domestic political scene of the Group of Seven (G7) member state. In May 2021, the  then-Prime Minister Mario Draghi appointed Elisabetta Belloni to lead the Department of Information for Security (DIS). The widely respected career diplomat thus became the first woman to lead an Italian intelligence agency.

Previously Belloni held positions in the Directorate-General for Political Affairs and Security of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Italy. She also served in several Italian embassies in Europe, notably Bratislava and Vienna. Belloni is commonly viewed as a career civil servant who has successfully served under various political administrations, without expressing any political preferences. Throughout her career, Belloni has refused to espouse partisan political views, which has only increased the respect with which she is viewed.

There is no known history of friction between Belloni and Giorgia Meloni, a rightwing populist who emerged as Italy’s first woman prime minister in October 2022. On the contrary, Belloni was viewed as an administrator who had gained Meloni’s trust. However, a report last week by the center-left La Repubblica newspaper claimed that Belloni detested Meloni’s constant interference in security affairs and found it difficult to truly gain the prime minister’s trust. The newspaper claimed that the spy chief tended her resignation on a phone call with the prime minister, telling close associates that she “couldn’t take it any more”.

In a subsequent interview published in the Corriere della Sera newspaper, Belloni said that “last few months of her mandate [had] been a real war of attrition”. Given the key position that Belloni held in the Italian cabinet, her sudden resignation has reignited the discussion about the phenomenon of executive overreach in Italian politics, as non-political career officials are resigning or being pushed out and are replaced by political appointees.

Meanwhile the prime minister announced last Thursday that she would appoint Vittorio Rizzi as Belloni’s successor in the DIS. A law enforcement official with a background in cybersecurity, Rizzi is currently serving as deputy director of the Internal Intelligence and Security Agency (AISI), the domestic security agency of Italy. He was appointed to that role by Meloni in September 2024.

► Author: Joseph Fitsanakis | Date: 13 January 2025 | Permalink