Meloni invites Zelensky to Rome and reaffirms Italy’s support for Ukraine
The Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, invited the Ukrainian President, Volodimir Zelensky, to Rome and reaffirmed the support of the Italian Government in the “political, military, economic and humanitarian” field to Ukraine, during a telephone conversation held on Tuesday. According to a note released by Palazzo Chigi, the headquarters of the Italian Executive, Meloni also transferred her intention to visit kyiv at the beginning of next year, something that she already advanced last week, although without specifying the date of the trip.
Details of the call are unknown, beyond the fact that the Italian prime minister assured that her country will make “the best effort” to reach a “just peace” for Ukraine. She also promised that Italy will collaborate in the reconstruction of the country. This is the second telephone contact that Meloni has with Zelensky. In her first call, on October 28, the leader showed her “full support” for kyiv “within the framework of international alliances.”
The leader of the far-right Brothers of Italy (FdI), who heads the Italian right-wing coalition also made up of Matteo Salvini’s far-right Liga and Silvio Berlusconi’s conservative Forza Italia, has been trying to reassure her international partners for some time in his latest statements, in which he has shown an Atlanticist and Europeanist spirit, although without sparing criticism of the European Union. In his investiture speech before the Chamber of Deputies, in which he outlined his government program for the next 5 years, he reiterated that Italy will continue to be a loyal NATO partner and, citing the “brave Ukrainian people”, confirmed that they will respect international commitments to help him defend himself against “blackmail by (Russian President Vladimir) Putin”. (Efe)
