The times, they are changing. Ukraine’s incursion into Russia’s southern Kursk region and the potential for Ukraine to use weapons supplied by its allies to strike Russian territory, alongside the prospect of former US President Donald Trump’s return to the White House, have heightened tensions within Italian politics, both within the governing coalition and among opposition parties.
- “We must not give up,” declared Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni during her speech at the Ambrosetti Forum in Cernobbio on Saturday. “I believe we have done the right thing, both morally and in Italy’s national interest,” she added.
- In a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the event, Prime Minister Meloni reiterated that “support for Ukraine is a top priority on the Italian G7 Presidency’s agenda,” reaffirming Italy’s commitment to “Ukraine’s legitimate defence and to a just and lasting peace.”
- The two leaders also focused on the issue of reconstruction, particularly in light of the upcoming Ukraine Recovery Conference, which is set to take place in Italy in 2025.
New, old aid. During the meeting with Prime Minister Meloni, President Zelensky emphasised the need for the Italian government to release the ninth aid package.
- The delivery of the Samp-T system (the Italo-French air defence system) was promised last April at the G7 Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Capri and was included in a ministerial decree as early as June. However, it has yet to be dispatched from Italian depots.
- As explained by sources from the Italian Ministry of Defence to Il Messaggero, the delay is due to production issues with key components. Defence Minister Guido Crosetto has personally intervened to resolve the matter, reportedly unblocking the process in recent days.
- The new missile batteries are expected to be shipped in just under three weeks, likely by the end of September.
A view from Brussels. At the Ambrosetti Forum, Josep Borrell, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs, expressed his “100%” agreement with Prime Minister Meloni’s reiterated support for Kyiv, but raised the question: “Why does Italy not allow Ukraine to use the weapons it provides to strike Russian bases within Russian territory?”
- The League, led by Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, responded by accusing Borrell of “illegitimate and unacceptable interference in the affairs of a sovereign country.”
- Clarifying that he did not wish to “interfere in national political positions,” Borrell reaffirmed the EU Member States’ united stance of support for Ukraine in an interview with La Stampa.
Political rifts. In the same interview, High Representative Borrell also noted the differing positions on Kyiv within Italian politics.
- “There are many divisions on the left as well,” he remarked after hearing statements from former Prime Minister and Five Star Movement president Giuseppe Conte, Democratic Party secretary Elly Schlein, and Azione leader Carlo Calenda.
- Borrell highlighted “significant differences in their positions. One of them wanted to support Kyiv and provide long-range weapons, while others opposed granting such armaments,” he added.
“Small details.” In Corriere della Sera, Italy’s leading newspaper, columnist Paolo Mieli pointed out that another prominent guest invited to the Ambrosetti Forum was Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, “almost to counterbalance the presence” of President Zelensky, and to “implicitly signal a form of equidistance on the part of the event’s organisers.”
- “Small details that indicate changing times,” Mieli wrote, noting that Italy has long been the country “most attuned to registering such shifts.”
- Prime Minister Orbán stated that Italian counterpart Meloni “is not just a colleague of (mine), she is a Christian sister of mine,” and reiterated his call for immediate mediation to achieve a “ceasefire.”
- President Zelensky views this perspective as highly unrealistic, unless it is framed within an agreement that guarantees Ukraine’s sovereignty and future.
