Italy strongly condemns the invasion
“Italy strongly condemns the invasion, which we consider unacceptable. The attack – Draghi said clearly – is a very serious violation of the sovereignty of a free and democratic state, of international treaties, and of the most fundamental European values. and to President Zelensky. The return of war in Europe cannot be tolerated ».
The return of war to Europe cannot be tolerated
“The return of the war in Europe cannot be tolerated,” said Draghi in no uncertain terms. He told how Italy reacted immediately. «The ambassador of the Russian Federation was summoned yesterday morning to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. We called on Moscow to cease the offensive, to withdraw its forces unconditionally, and we reaffirmed Italy’s full support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine ”. Draghi spoke with French President Macron, German Chancellor Scholz, European Council President Michel, European Commission President Von der Leyen. “With them I shared the firm condemnation of an” unjustified and unprovoked “attack against Ukraine”.
We prepare emergency plans against an energy crisis
«The Government is working to prepare all the necessary measures to better manage a possible energy crisis. We hope that these plans are not necessary, but we cannot be caught unprepared, ”said Prime Minister Mario Draghi in the briefing in Parliament on the Russia-Ukraine conflict. «The emergency measures include greater flexibility in gas consumption, suspensions in the industrial sector, rules on gas consumption in the thermoelectric sector. The government is also working to increase alternative supplies. We intend to increase liquefied natural gas imported from other routes, such as the US ».
Few regasifiers, reflection is needed
«Our capacity of use is limited by the small number of regasifiers in operation. For the future, a reflection on these infrastructures is all the more opportune. The Government also intends to work to increase flows from non-fully loaded gas pipelines, such as TAP from Azerbaijan, TransMed from Algeria and Tunisia, GreenStream from Libya ”, said the prime minister.
It is imprudent not to have diversified suppliers
«The events of these days – the premier recalled – demonstrate the imprudence of not having diversified our energy sources and our suppliers more in recent decades. In Italy, we have reduced gas production from 17 billion cubic meters per year in 2000 to around 3 billion cubic meters in 2020 – against a national consumption that has remained constant between approximately 70 and 90 billion cubic meters. . We must proceed quickly on the diversification front, to overcome our vulnerability as soon as possible and avoid the risk of future crises ».