Rome \u2013 \u201cI am convinced that the war in Ukraine will end within this year\u201d.\u00a0Antonio Tajani, speaking from the European People’s Party congress in Valencia \u2014 where he is due to be re-confirmed as Vice President today \u2014 expresses confident optimism about an imminent end to the conflict between Moscow and Kyiv. The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Deputy Prime Minister attributes this optimism to \u201cPope Francis\u2019 most recent major contribution\u201d, referring to the talks held in the Vatican on Saturday, but not to the so-called mini-truce proposed by Vladimir Putin: \u201cIt\u2019s nothing but a bluff\u201d.<\/p>\n
Minister Tajani, is there a lesson to be learned from the Spanish blackout? Sabotage, hacking, terrorism… Europe seems vulnerable.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cEven if it were just human error, it proves how essential investment in security is. And I\u2019m not just talking about bombs and tanks: security also involves infrastructure \u2014 energy and cyber systems alike. This incident shows it may not have been a simple accident. We need proper investment, not carelessness or demagoguery\u201d.<\/p>\n You mention demagoguery on security… Are you referring to Salvini?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cNo, I mean the so-called \u2018peace fakers\u2019 \u2014 those who make decisions without really understanding the issues\u201d.<\/p>\n You\u2019re in Valencia for the EPP summit. You\u2019ve called for a \u2018revolution\u2019 in the EU. What do you mean?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI believe defending the status quo would be damaging \u2014 for Italy, for the EPP, and for the EU as a whole. We need to break certain patterns and ensure Europe returns to seriously addressing major issues: immigration, defence, industrial policy. We need real subsidiarity and a system with fewer regulations. I proposed, and the EPP accepted, a \u2018one new rule, two old ones repealed\u2019 policy to reduce bureaucracy. We\u2019re also proposing institutional reform: merging the roles of the Presidents of the European Council and Commission; direct election of this new President by citizens; and giving more power to the European Parliament, which currently has virtually no legislative initiative. Furthermore, the unanimity rule must be reconsidered \u2014 we need to move past the veto system. We want a different Europe: more democratic and closer to the people, not at the mercy of populism\u201d.<\/p>\n But slogans work, and the EPP is the EU\u2019s most influential party \u2014 it helped create the current system.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cIn reality, the EPP has often gone in a different direction. We\u2019ve never had an absolute majority and have had to govern with others. Now we want to change things. We\u2019ve learned from mistakes \u2014 ours, those of other parties, and those of member states who\u2019ve paralysed the Commission thinking they could act alone\u201d.<\/p>\n Could the images from the Pope\u2019s funeral go down in history as the beginning of peace in Ukraine? <\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThose images are of historical significance: they mark Pope Francis\u2019 latest major contribution to peace. The Church has a role to play, as shown by the private talks between Trump and other leaders. Whether it will lead to a solution, I don\u2019t know \u2014 but it\u2019s a step forward\u201d.<\/p>\n And Putin\u2019s proposed truce? <\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a bluff, just like the one at Easter. It\u2019s not a real ceasefire. A more concrete proposal is needed\u201d.<\/p>\n What developments do you foresee?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s up to Putin to take the first step. He needs to respond to Trump \u2014 so far, he hasn\u2019t, unlike Zelensky. The talks will start from new terms. Everyone will present their position, and a compromise will be sought\u201d.<\/p>\n There\u2019s talk of a US-guaranteed peace, with European forces supporting Kyiv. Will Italy take part alongside the \u2018Willing\u2019?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s too early to say. But we\u2019re ready to do our part \u2014 always under the United Nations\u2019 umbrella. We\u2019re organising a conference in Rome on the reconstruction of Ukraine. A preparatory event has already taken place in Brussels, and another is scheduled for Verona. I am convinced the war will end within this year\u201d.<\/p>\n Speaking of the historic images from Saturday\u2019s funeral \u2014 the Prime Minister wasn\u2019t visible in the photos, unlike Macron and Starmer. Coincidence or political choice? <\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThe Prime Minister was in the square and took part in the funeral. She had a deep relationship with the Pope. She met leaders on arrival. The Trump-Zelensky meeting was held privately \u2014 no need to read further into it\u201d.<\/p>\n Rome will soon host talks between Iran and the US \u2014 what should we expect?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThese are important signals. The fact that Rome is the venue for US-Iran talks is symbolic in itself: it shows we are a credible player. We can\u2019t do everything alone, but we can certainly contribute\u201d.<\/p>\n On the rearmament front, the new Merz government in Germany has triggered the safeguard clause for the ReArmEU programme. Will Italy follow suit? <\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll see. It\u2019s a bold move by Germany \u2014 a real shift and a break with a long-standing taboo. They\u2019ve realised that rigidity won\u2019t help if we\u2019re to achieve important goals. Italy hasn\u2019t decided yet\u201d.<\/p>\n Not everyone in government agrees. Salvini has called rearmament \u2018madness\u2019…<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cInternal debate is normal \u2014 but ultimately, responsibility will prevail\u201d.<\/p>\n A similar debate seems to be unfolding regarding the International Criminal Court. Hungary has announced it\u2019s leaving, and Salvini called it \u2018the right decision\u2019. Is that an option for Italy? Rome has clashed with The Hague before.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cHungary made a legitimate choice. But it\u2019s one thing to clash with institutions, another to stop believing in them. I continue to believe in international justice \u2014 and therefore that Italy should not withdraw\u201d.<\/p>\n What\u2019s your verdict on Trump\u2019s first 100 days? <\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cIn these 100 days, Trump has shaken Europe out of complacency. He\u2019s made us realise we must rely more on ourselves. Still within the Atlantic alliance, of course \u2014 but we have to pull our weight. Italy will soon announce it has reached the 2% of GDP target for defence. I haven\u2019t agreed with all his decisions \u2014 like the tariffs \u2014 but you can\u2019t assess the overall picture based solely on a single move. What matters is that Europe and the US keep talking\u201d.<\/p>\n Italy also has to choose a new ambassador to Washington. There are rumours of disagreements between you and Meloni. <\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll decide together, as always \u2014 aiming for the best outcome. But that particular \u2018match\u2019 hasn\u2019t even started yet\u201d.<\/p>\n Speaking of upcoming matches \u2014 there\u2019s the Conclave too. Some say Macron is lobbying hard…<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m a practising Catholic and I don\u2019t believe states should interfere. I trust in Providence, and I\u2019m sure the best Pope possible will be chosen. Whether Italian or not, what matters is that he\u2019s a good pastor\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Rome \u2013 \u201cI am convinced that the war in Ukraine will end within this year\u201d.\u00a0Antonio Tajani, speaking from the European People’s Party congress in Valencia \u2014 where he is due to be re-confirmed as Vice President today \u2014 expresses confident optimism about an imminent end to the conflict between Moscow and Kyiv. The Minister of […]","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":135799,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[28],"class_list":["post-135840","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interviste","tag-ministro"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135840","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=135840"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135840\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":135841,"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135840\/revisions\/135841"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/135799"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=135840"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=135840"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=135840"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}