Seeing as the EU state that ' National ' subsidies are illegal, they would have stopped any such subsidies to Alitalia ( if that's what they are ) by now.
Oh...Hang on....
As for different countries having different jurisdictions....
I think the Irishman doesn't actually play the game at all - he just ignores the game's rules when it suits him, and screams to the heavens when the competition does the same.
But as you say, he spotted the opportunities which the EU provided and exploited them perfectly. But you can't blame BA for not wanting to fly a route betwen Katowice and Gerona at €10 per pop - EU subsidies or none....