Ukraine, Di Maio: “Salvini in Russia? Draghi talks with Putin”

“I believe that if we have to talk to Putin, Draghi speaks to us”. Thus Luigi Di Maio that he had not been informed by Matteo Salvini of his intention to go to Moscow. The Foreign Ministry did not request clarification from the leader of the League: “We limited ourselves to saying that no one knew anything about it. The Italian government did not know about this intention. How far between the intention and what will happen does not I know, “Di Maio said.

“One thing is certain in such a delicate moment there is no difference whether a member of parliament, a party leader or a minister wants to go to Moscow. And the posture of the country in general that is represented”, commented Di Maio. “I recommend a lot of caution – he stressed – the war in Ukraine or the trip to Moscow is not a summer tour theme, it’s a bit complicated”.

“The real problem is that Putin must demonstrate that he wants peace, in the last week he has intensified bombing raids on the Donbass and above all he has extended the age to enlist in the army. All this does not allow us to imagine having an interlocutor on the other side who want to sit at the table “, Di Maio said again when interviewed by Bruno Vespa at the Masseria Forum, underlining that in any case we must” try and continue “to work for peace and that Italy” is at the forefront “of this effort.

“I can say, however, that I am not optimistic, in the sense that in a few weeks we can reach peace. I exclude this. It is not a short path. We must prepare ourselves for a narrow, uphill, difficult path. But this must not be useless. stop in the goal of achieving it, “he added.

In the work on corridors to evacuate the grain, “Russia must necessarily be one of the interlocutors”. There are countries in Africa and the Mediterranean that received 70% of their grain from Ukraine, Di Maio said. And “that grain goes to many countries over which Russia has spheres of influence”, he continued, noting that “Russia is starving for her allies”.