Italy's Meloni says she can work with EU head von der Leyen despite party vote

ROME (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said she would still be able to work with Ursula von der Leyen despite her Brothers of Italy party having voted against a second term for the German as head of the European Commission.

Members of the European Parliament backed von der Leyen's bid for another five-year term at the helm of the European Union's powerful executive body on Thursday.

"We have cooperated until now and we will continue to do so in the future," Meloni said of her relationship with von der Leyen.

"We are people who have responsibilities and we understand their importance," Meloni said in an interview with Italian daily Corriere della Sera published on Saturday.

Meloni, who has led a right-wing Italian government since 2022, said she supported von der Leyen's comments in her address to the European Parliament on the need to control immigration but the Italian leader added that Europe overall needed less regulation and to find ways to boost its economic competitiveness.

She also stressed Italy's importance as the third-largest economy in the EU and a founding member of the bloc, adding that it had the most stable government of all major EU nations.

"Everyone recognises the weight and role of Italy," she said.

The Italian prime minister also said she would be able to work with whoever was elected U.S. president in November.

"For me what counts is the strength of the alliance with the United States," she said.

"To think that an alliance between two G7 nations would change with a change of government is stupid and childish."

(Writing by Keith Weir; Editing by Tomasz Janowski)