Italy’s President, Giorgio Napolitano, has asked Matteo Renzi – the 39-year-old mayor of Florence – to form a new government.

Mr  Renzi is set to become Italy’s youngest ever Prime Minister at the age of 39, two months younger than Benito Mussolini was when he came to power in 1922. He is also set to become the youngest PM at the European Council next month when it convenes in Brussels. He is also an unelected MP.

Mr Renzi ousted former Prime Minister Enrico Letta in a Democratic Party vote of confidence last week. Enrico Letta’s popularity was fading, as were the markets’ perceptions of his policies. As soon as he was asked to form a new government, Italy’s borrowing costs fell to their lowest rate in eight years – another vote of confidence for the young leader’s plans for economic reform.

"The most pressing emergency, which concerns my generation and others, is the emergency of labour, of unemployment and of despair," Mr Renzi told reporters after his meeting with the Italian President.

But all is not yet cast in stone. It will take some days for Mr Renzi to form the new government and after being sworn in, he would need to win two votes of confidence in the Camera dei Deputati as well as the Senato.

Mr Letta only lasted 10 months in his post. But what will this mean for Malta? Let us go back to Mr Letta. Although there were some spats between Malta and Italy on the issue of immigration, Mr Letta and Prime Minister Joseph Muscat were seen to be allies, especially on the same matter within the European Union. Both had a good one-to-one relationship and matters were often solved over a phone call between the two.

Mr Renzi is described by many as being ‘bullish’. Dr Muscat is also described as being ‘bullish’ in some quarters and this could, potentially, put the two on a collision course.

But then again, it could go the other way. If the two hit it off – and sometimes international politics is all about hitting it off – then we could see Malta and Italy form an even stronger alliance with two big and strong personalities.

Malta and Italy have always enjoyed strong ties, and we are sure that in one way or another, the relationship between our two countries will continue to grow, despite the challenges that face us. As it stands though, Dr Muscat will have to do much to court Mr Renzi and could also consider heading a state visit to Italy in order to touch base as soon as possible. The upcoming EU summit is going to be held between 20 and 21 March and the two prime ministers will have to forge a common position in regards to immigration through the southern Mediterranean.