Overview
- Nicaragua's foreign ministry announced it had cut formal diplomatic relations with Italy in response to Italian foreign minister Antonio Tajani's public criticism of the government for sheltering Alessio Casimirri.
- Italy has renewed its call for Casimirri to be handed over to face the convictions tied to the 1978 Aldo Moro kidnapping and killing and says it will press the issue through Italian institutions and at the European level.
- Nicaragua rejects the extradition request in part because its constitution bars the surrender of its own citizens and Casimirri has lived in Nicaragua for decades and obtained citizenship.
- Alessio Casimirri was convicted in Italy over his role with the Red Brigades in the 1978 kidnapping that led to the murder of former prime minister Aldo Moro, a case that remains a sensitive point in Italian public life.
- The diplomatic break is likely to deepen strains between Nicaragua and European governments, reduce bilateral cooperation, and raise the prospect of further political and diplomatic escalation as Italy seeks support from EU bodies.