Italy’s co-deputy prime ministers, Matteo Salvini and Luigi Di Maio, have both voiced their support for the ‘Yellow Vest’ protest movement in France in a stunning blow to the European establishment.

Following the eighth week of high-intensity demonstrations across France, Salvini slammed French President Emmanuel Macron while Di Maio encouraged the Yellow Vests to stay the course.

“I support honest citizens who protest against a governing president [who is] against his people,” Salvini said, according to RT.

At the same time, Di Maio urged the Yellow Vests to “not give up” in a blog post on his party website.

“From Italy we have been following your battle from the day you appeared for the first time, coloring the streets of Paris and other French cities in yellow,” Di Maio wrote. “We know what animates your spirit and why you decided to take to the streets.”

“In France, as in Italy, politics has become deaf to the needs of citizens who have been kept out of the most important decisions affecting the people. The cry that rises strongly from the French squares is ultimately one: ‘let us participate!'”

Di Maio accused Macron and other European elites of implementing policies that hurt all of Europe, especially those pertaining to immigration and economics.

In Francia, come in Italia, la politica è diventata sorda alle esigenze dei cittadini, tenuti fuori dalle decisioni più importanti che riguardano il popolo. Il grido che si alza forte dalle piazze francesi è uno: “fateci partecipare!”. https://t.co/cBJvUwEk5s — Luigi Di Maio (@luigidimaio) January 7, 2019



Salvini, a nationalist-populist and most prominent face of Italian leadership, and Macron, a diehard globalist, embody the opposing forces battling for the future of Europe.

As France now burns on a weekly basis and Macron’s disapproval rating has hit 75 percent, Salvini enjoys massive support in Italy and beyond, as does Di Maio’s 5 Star Movement.

“History will probably show that if [Macron] had focused more on the French and less on Salvini and Italy, he would have a few less problems today,” Salvini said weeks ago. “Do people in Italy want scenes like we’ve seen in Paris? No. I want to prevent this.”

Dan Lyman: Follow @CitizenAnalyst