Overview
- Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced Tuesday in Verona that Italy has suspended the pact’s automatic five-year renewal.
- The 2003 memorandum, which covers exchanges of military equipment and joint research, was due to roll over to 2031 this month but will now be reviewed case by case.
- The step followed Italy’s demand for answers after Israeli warning shots hit a UN convoy carrying Italian peacekeepers in Lebanon on April 8.
- Israel downplayed the move, as Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said the memorandum lacked real substance and did not affect the country’s security.
- Italian media reported that Defense Minister Guido Crosetto conveyed the decision to Israeli counterpart Israel Katz.