Overview
- Ambassador Alexey Paramonov told Izvestia that Italy has hermetically sealed official channels and cannot be trusted as a diplomatic partner
- He labeled “russofobia” and “ucrofilia” as new ideological “viruses” corrupting Italy’s elite and hardening its stance toward Russia
- Paramonov asserted that Rome has concealed details of €3–4 billion in military aid to Kyiv and is preparing a twelfth package of supplies
- The envoy invoked Sandro Pertini’s 1949 warning that NATO is an “instrument of war” to criticize Italy’s plan to boost defense spending to 5 percent of GDP
- Italian leaders from across the political spectrum rejected his claims as propaganda and reaffirmed Rome’s continued support for Ukraine