Rome: Putin’s rapprochement with Italy remark targets EU elections

5 months ago 22

Russia is trying to influence European elections and divide the West, Italy’s Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani warned on Thursday, as Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed hope to focus on restoring relations with Italy once the situation in Ukraine is “normalised”.

Speaking at the ANSA Forum on Thursday, the Forza Italia (EPP) leader commented in response to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s perceived rapprochement with Italy.

“Putin is waging a hybrid war and trying to influence the European elections, trying to divide the West,” Tajani said.

“We are all united in the defence of Ukraine,” he said, reiterating Italy’s commitment to peace and the use of Italian weapons only for defensive purposes on Ukrainian territory, adding: “NATO’s unity is not at stake.”

On Wednesday, during a press conference with major international media at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Putin expressed hope for a rapid restoration of bilateral relations with Italy once the situation in Ukraine is “normalised.”

“Restoring relations with Italy could perhaps happen even faster than with any other European country,” said Putin, citing the lack of “caveman-like Russophobia” in Italy as a facilitating factor.

Observers view this as an attempt by Putin to exploit internal Italian divisions to weaken the country’s support for Ukraine.

Recent positions taken by almost all Italian political parties against the use of Italian military aid by Ukraine to target Russian territory have not gone unnoticed.

In a related development, another Italian Deputy Prime Minister, Matteo Salvini (Lega/ID), recently called for the resignation of NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg over the proposal to use Western weapons against targets in Russia.

Salvini, known for his ambiguous stance on Russia, told the foreign press in Rome on Wednesday that Europe was doing too little to promote peace between Ukraine and Russia and blamed European defence efforts for bringing the world closer to a third world war.

“If we had a common European defence, a common European army, and if today it were commanded by a Frenchman or a German, we would risk being on the brink of World War III,” said the Lega leader.

“Lega will no longer vote for the sending of arms to Ukraine without guaranteeing that they are solely and exclusively for defence,” he added.

(Alessia Peretti | Euractiv.it)