Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni speaks during a press conference after an extraordinary meeting of a EU Summit at The European Council Building in Brussels, Belgium on February 10, 2023.
Giorgia Meloni has firmly ruled out any Italian involvement in sending troops to Ukraine, distancing herself from the so-called Coalition of the Willing and fuelling a public rift with French president Emmanuel Macron.
Speaking from Tirana, where the European Political Community summit took place, the Italian prime minister made her position unequivocally clear: “Italy is not willing to send troops to Ukraine, and it would make no sense to participate in formats that have objectives we have not agreed to.”
Her comments came after a high-profile meeting between Macron, Keir Starmer, Friedrich Merz, Donald Tusk and Volodymyr Zelensky — from which Italy was noticeably absent. Although Meloni had joined a previous call on 10 May, she did not take part in the leaders’ meeting with Zelensky in Albania, even though she was present at the summit.
The absence was quickly seized upon by opposition parties in Italy. Meloni, in turn, hit back: “To those who complain — such as the opposition — I ask for the same clarity I offer: are we expected to join these formats because we intend to send troops to Ukraine, or just to pose for a photo and then say no? I am a serious person.”
Macron, meanwhile, dismissed claims that troop deployments had been discussed either in Tirana or during his recent visit to Kyiv. “The discussion is about a ceasefire — let’s avoid spreading false information. There is already enough of that coming from Russia,” he said.
Nonetheless, the episode highlighted growing tensions between Rome and the northern European bloc supporting Ukraine. A group photo of Macron, Starmer, Merz, Tusk and Zelensky — all of whom also spoke with Donald Trump — went viral, further underlining Italy’s marginal position.
The four leaders later reaffirmed their commitment to unity on Ukraine and condemned the Kremlin’s rejection of a ceasefire. Macron suggested future talks with Trump and possibly Putin, while Ursula von der Leyen announced upcoming sanctions including restrictions on Nord Stream, crude oil pricing and Russian banks.
People’s heroism
While Meloni praised the Ukrainian people’s heroism and called for renewed efforts towards peace and security guarantees for Kyiv, her distancing from the core group of European leaders has drawn criticism at home.
Giuseppe Conte accused her of sidelining Italy: “At summits she’s a ghost — she’s benched the country.” Matteo Renzi added: “She’s an influencer without influence,” while Angelo Bonelli remarked: “She remains excluded from the tables that matter.”
Meloni is expected to discuss the matter further in a bilateral meeting with Friedrich Merz in Rome.
The meeting also addressed issues such as energy, migration and security, and a permanent secretariat of the EPC was established, according to French sources.
Meloni had maintained a close relationship with the newly elected Albanian prime minister, Edi Rama, with whom she had signed a controversial agreement to build two detention centres with the initial aim of outsourcing the management of reception, asylum requests and the eventual repatriation of adult male migrants intercepted in the central Mediterranean.
Her government had attempted it three times, and after the Italian judiciary rejected the detention of migrants in Albania and ordered that they be transferred directly to Italy, the matter was left pending a ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU).
Stay tuned with Euro weekly news for the latest news about Europe and Italy.
