The situation regarding peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine “is still very fluid”. “Europe must not panic, chasing this or that statement, but must remain united and take action with coolness and determination”. This is the view of Minister Tajani, according to whom “Europe has the right to sit at the negotiating table” and shall assert the fact that it has imposed significant economic sanctions against Russia. This is the reason why any agreement “shall envisage our involvement.”
Trump’s emissaries, however, have made it clear that this will not be the case….
“In Munich I had two talks with Marco Rubio and two with the Russia-Ukraine envoy, Keith Kellogg, and this kind of message was never conveyed to us. With the US Secretary of State I raised the issue of sanctions that the European Union has adopted against Russia in recent months: this is clearly a fundamental lever for us to be in a position to claim a role. Rubio himself yesterday publicly acknowledged the need to involve us and Ukraine. Europe must be strong, united and credible, convinced of the fact of being essential at the negotiating table. We must require to be there”.
Yes, but tomorrow there will already be the first round in Riyadh and Europe will not be there…
“But negotiations will not be closed in a few days, it will be a matter of months: today we are still at the level of preliminary actions. Furthermore, are we sure that the Americans are not consulting Europe, that they will not take into account the messages we are conveying? What did we European Ministers do in Munich? The message is clear: one way or another Ukraine and Europe must be involved. I repeat: we must not get too worked up because we would give a signal of weakness. Cooler heads will prevail”.
Is the Summit hastily convened by President Macron likely to give this signal of nervousness?
“The French President has convened a meeting between the main European leaders that will serve precisely to discuss our common position. For example, we cannot fail to give responses on the issue of European defence, which for us Italians is a fundamental issue, as we have been arguing since the time of De Gasperi and as we have always argued with Silvio Berlusconi as well”.
Italy, however, is among the EU countries that are still far from the 2% threshold set by Nato…
“We are in favour of increasing defence spending and I am pleased that the President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has taken on board our requests by opening up the possibility of separating it from the Stability Pact. A change of pace that is already to be regarded as our diplomatic success. We are determined to reach the 2 per cent target in the first place, but to do so we cannot cut social spending. We will not cut spending on healthcare and education. Therefore loosening EU constraints was crucial”.
After von der Leyen’s opening, several diplomats emphasise the fact that “now Italy will have no more excuses”: can the possibility of exceeding the Pact be a double-edged sword?
“We have never hidden behind any excuse. We are the country that, after the United States, has the largest number of men and means engaged in NATO missions. Our military is all over the world; this is a commitment that counts and that we will assert and enforce”.
On the national front, do you fear political resistance to increasing military spending?
“Spending more on defence does not mean being warmongers, but engaging more in peace missions, for example. Strengthening European defence is essential to strengthen our presence within NATO.
Individual countries will have greater national spending margins, but is this enough to build a common European Defence?
“Separating this spending from the deficit serves first of all to enable States to achieve the objectives set by NATO. I am a pro-European and I support the need to introduce Eurobonds for Defence, but we have to see whether the other countries also want it… I hope so, as I have always been at the forefront in supporting this, as a Commissioner and also as President of the European Parliament. In May 2023, in his last public speech before leaving us, Berlusconi urged us to fight for a European army.”
Considering that the USA has closed the door on Ukraine’s entry into NATO, is Europe willing to take on the security guarantees for Ukraine to be ensured by a military presence?
“The guarantees shall come from a front of countries broader than Europe. We shall see in what way also the United States shall be involved. Any military peacekeeping mission can only be international, possibly in the United Nations framework, thus involving the Security Council. In this context, we as Italy and as Europe are obviously willing to play our part, as we would be ready to do so in the Middle East.”
Several leaders have called for the appointment of an EU envoy for Ukraine: do you agree?
“In the meantime, the EU has to decide what it wants to do. Afterwards the Council will define how to do it and with whom. It is very important, inter alia, that every step is taken in agreement with the United Kingdom.“
In light of recent tension, also on the political and commercial levels, is there the risk of a rift between Europe and the USA?
“Transatlantic cooperation has been going on for years. There have always been and there will be moments of friction, but the attitude must be constructive. I understand from my meetings with Rubio that they want to talk to us and have no intention of excluding us.”
Vice-President JD Vance’s remarks, however, do not help: is his endorsement of the Afd a form of interference in German politics?
“We as Forza Italia urged our members in Germany to support the Cdu/Csu. Vance plays his role and I play mine. With the new Trump Administration there is an open exchange of views and we have to be strong, without giving signals of panic. We are well aware of the fact that we cannot protect Ukraine alone, but we need decisive action from the Americans.”
Does the clash over tariffs not risk hampering this exchange of views?
“We need to negotiate. As the Governor of the Bank of Italy, Fabio Panetta, also said, a trade war would harm everyone and push inflation up in the USA, a scenario that the Americans themselves want to avert. We need to work on a strategy, for example by investing more in the USA and increasing the purchase of products from the USA. We need to remain united as Europe because united we are stronger.”
