It is reported that the situation arose amid tensions within the Italian coalition government over the issue of assistance to Ukraine.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has promised to help Ukraine resist Russian aggression until the end of the war, but her deputy Matteo Salvini, leader of the League party, doubts the need for further support for Kyiv.
As sources told Reuters, the decree on extending aid to Ukraine was included in the agenda of a meeting on December 3, dedicated to preparations for the government meeting on December 4. But it was removed because “the agenda was too busy.”
Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of the aggressor country of the Russian Federation, Italy has provided Ukraine with 12 packages of military assistance.
Every year, the country's government adopted decrees to extend military assistance to Kyiv. They allowed the Italian Council of Ministers to provide packages of weapons to Ukraine without parliamentary approval. The current decree expires at the end of the year.
Once approved by the government, the new decree will come into force immediately, but must then be ratified by the Italian Parliament within 60 days.
Context
On November 14, Salvini said that providing more military assistance to Ukraine will not help end the war that the aggressor country of the Russian Federation has been waging against it for the fourth year. Deputy Meloni also expressed doubt that supplying arms to Ukraine would help it regain lost ground.
The Italian Deputy Prime Minister noted that “corruption scandals are emerging in which the Ukrainian government is embroiled” (the “Midas case”), so he “would not want the money of Italian workers and pensioners to be used to fuel further corruption.”
Salvini's words were commented on by the head of the Italian Defense Ministry, Guido Crosetto. He said he understood Salvini's concerns but did not judge the country “on the basis of two corrupt individuals.” Crosetto added that Italy is trying to help the civilian population of Ukraine, which is suffering from Russian attacks.
As Reuters pointed out, the chairman of the far-right League party, Salvini, has established close ties with the aggressor country of the Russian Federation on the eve of its invasion of Ukraine in 2022. While he has so far supported Meloni's decision to send military aid to Ukraine, he has avoided direct criticism of illegitimate Russian President Vladimir Putin, the agency emphasized.
