“Ukraine is ready to recognize what is important Italy’s role in reconstruction and in the rapid recovery of the country”. This is what we read in a joint statement by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and premier Giorgia Meloni, published on the website of the Ukrainian presidency.
“I reiterated the full support from Italy in the face of Russian aggression, Italy does not intend to waver and will not. Almost a year has passed since the day that turned the clock back a few decades, the invasion should have lasted a few days but it didn’t happen that way because the heroic reaction of a nation willing to do anything to defend the its freedom, identity and sovereignty”. Thus the premier Giorgia Meloni after the meeting in Kiev with the president of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky. “In the presence of the world, Ukraine has already won its battle to affirm its identity”.
“Italy will give every possible assistance to create the conditions for a negotiation, but until then will give all kinds of military, financial, civilian support. Those who support Ukraine militarily are those who work for peace”. So Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, after the meeting in Kiev with the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky.
“For me the facts are valid and whatever the Parliament has been called to vote in support of Ukraine, the parties that are part of the majority have voted for it. Apart from a few declarations, in fact the majority has always been compact. There is a clearly lined-up program, it has always been respected by everyone and I trust it will still be like this” Meloni said.
THE PRESS CONFERENCE FROM KIEV
“When there is an assault all weapons are defensive. At the moment there is no sending of planes on the table, it is a decision to be made with international partners. We focused on anti-aircraft defense systems, Samp-T, Sword, Skyguard. The priority is to defend infrastructure and citizens”, underlined the premier.
“We talked a lot about the topic of reconstruction, not only at the end of the war. Now rebuilding a destroyed building is a sign of hope, it means betting on Ukraine. Italy is working on a conference on reconstruction to be held in April. We need a change of pace, we need to work from now, I think Italy can play a leading role with its strategic excellence”.
“I don’t know if Putin’s was a warning but the time of Covid was another world. The world has changed after February 24 and it is not a choice that we made”.
ANSA Agency
The Ukrainian president criticizes Berlusconi’s position during the joint press conference with Meloni: ‘Everyone has the right to think, the crux is who gave him the mandate’ (ANSA)
Someone has “underestimated the heroic reaction of a people willing to do whatever must be done to defend its freedom, its sovereignty and its identity”. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said this at a press conference in Kiev with the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky. “It reminded me of the birth of the Italian state: there was a time when it was said that Italy was only a geographical expression. But with the Risorgimento it proved to be a nation. Someone said it was easy to fold Ukraine because it was not a nation. But with your ability to fight you have proved that you are an extraordinary nation.”
“True peace is achieved by reaffirming that the international community does not accept the invasion of sovereign states, does not accept a world in which force redraws the borders between states, in which those who believe they are militarily stronger believe they have the right to invade its neighbor. We must be serious about this matter”, said Meloni, underlining that “Nothing must be decided without Ukraine, we must agree on this, and for this it is essential that the initiative comes from the president Zelensky”.
Giorgia Meloni in Kiev: ‘Honored, it’s a duty to be here’
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, a few days before the anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, is in Kiev where she meets President Volodymyr Zelensky. The prime minister has also been to Bucha and Irpin, cities that symbolize resistance to the Russian invasion. In Bucha, one of the places of massacres of civilians, she was moved: “You are not alone”, she said. “It’s different to talk about numbers or see people’s lives destroyed for no reason, it’s worth seeing,” she added to Irpin. Giorgia Meloni also liquidated like this Putin’s address to the nation: “What we heard was propaganda that we already know, the facts are different.”
The visit to Bucha, one of the sites of the massacres of civilians perpetrated in March last year by the Russian army in Ukraine. Meloni placed red flowers to pay homage to the victims in mass graves. In front of this symbolic place, the Prime Minister closed in recollection. “You can count on Italy, we have been with you from the beginning and will be until the end. You have all our support,” the prime minister told the Ukrainian authorities. A medal made with used bullets is the homage reserved for her premier during her visit to Bucha. Meloni carefully observed the medal and read aloud with interest the engraving on the back: “City not conquered”. At times moved, Meloni listened to the stories of the tragedies caused in these places by the Russian aggression from various Ukrainian authorities. After reviewing even a small photographic exhibition with images of the horrors, the Prime Minister asked the interpreter to translate a message to her interlocutors: “You are not alone”. “We will fight for you and your freedom“.
After Bucha, the visit to Irpin, which suffered heavy bombing in the initial stages of the war. Irpin was also the stage last year for Mario Draghi’s visit with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Welcomed by the mayor, the premier listened to the mayor’s story of the destruction of this area, asking him various questions about the population and how long it would take to rebuild the city. “Having the money – answered the mayor -, in two years the whole city can be rebuilt”. Giorgia Meloni signed a flag of Ukraine in Irpin leaving a dedication: ‘At your side!’, ‘on your side’.
Ukraine, the report from Bucha: this is how a city died
“It’s different to talk about numbers or see people’s lives destroyed for no reason,” Meloni said before leaving Irpin. Kiev “is grateful to President Meloni for her leadership and for his commitment to continuing to support Ukraine”. The spokesman for the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry Oleg Nikolenko told ANSA, commenting on the premier’s visit to Kiev. “We count on Italy’s further full support in winning peace for Ukraine, re-establishing its sovereignty and territorial integrity, and holding Russia to account for its crimes,” he added. “We also look to Rome’s continued role in strengthening Ukraine’s defense capabilities to protect our people from Russia’s brutal war.”
The premier’s trip to Kiev
THE PODCAST OF THE REPORTER, the journey to Ukraine