Russia shake it again italian politics. Reason: Leakage from the US State Department (USA) that Moscow will secretly spend $300 million since 2014 Trying to influence political parties in more than twenty countries. Since the information was made public on Tuesday, the issue has exacerbated the current situation. tense election campaign Only a few days left until the important one. elections.
Right-wing parties such as the League Matteo Salvini, who did not hide his admiration for Russia in the past Vladimir Putin, They chose the counterattack. “The only thing that is certain is that the (extinct) Communist Party was the first party to receive money from the Kremlin,” the party said in a statement.
However, the Union also warned that it would condemn this party and anyone who “mistakenly quoted” Salvini. “Lies and insinuations will no longer be tolerated: Enough is enough,” they said. Along the same lines, the far-right brothers from Italy (Fratelli D’Italia), its leader, Giorgia Melony He also said his formation is “to make sure it doesn’t take money from outsiders.” “All of our funding formats are verifiable,” he added.
Meloni spoke in this way after the Italian newspaper ‘La Repubblica’ published his statements. Kurt VolkerFormer US special envoy to Ukraine (during Donald Trump administration), not just Liga and Forza Italia Silvio Berlusconi They could have “sympathy” for Moscow, but also the Brothers from Italy could get “a little help”.
Similarly, with the controversy that made almost all the headlines of the country’s main media, the Russian Embassy in Rome also wanted to give its version and vehemently denied the accusations from the United States. Antonio Tajani Today, the face of Forza Italia called for “transparency”. a request you have made Enrico LettaThe leader of the progressive Democratic Party (PD), who has repeatedly warned in recent weeks about how Russia is trying to favor right-wing parties.
Secret services on alert
“There is currently no information that Italy is among the countries involved in the so-called Russian financing,” he said. Adolfo UrsoHead of the Parliamentary Republic Security Commission (Cosapir), which is responsible for controlling the activities of the secret services in Italy. However, “things can change,” he added.
In a more caustic tone, the Italian foreign minister, Luigi Di Maio’s photo., underlined that there may be “several files”. old party, 5 Star Movement The M5E, which left last spring, was also chosen because it had very close ties to Moscow in the past. In this context, Cosapir called an extraordinary meeting this Friday with the undersecretary for security, Franco Gabrielli.
Tensions between the Italian League and the Brothers
The current climate coincides with a moment of tension between the right-wing coalition partners, the Union of Italy and the Brotherhood. “Some of Salvini’s statements have surprised me for days; sometimes more contentious More with me than with his rivals,” Meloni said in an interview Wednesday night with the television channel La 7.
This is because of the different positions the two sides face. energy crisis, because Salvini wants to significantly increase public spending to help citizens pay the bills that have risen due to inflation. On the contrary, Meloni argues that the country should be more careful in its spending as it has a very high public debt (150% of GDP) and affirms that the current energy crisis will pass quickly as it is the result of speculation. “I don’t understand the argument and it seems pretty unfair to me,” Meloni said.