(Adnkronos) – Italy wants to see “action” from Russia to end its over-four-year-long invasion of Ukraine, not “words”, foreign minister Antonio Tajani stated on Monday after president Vladimir Putin said he believed the war may “be coming to and end”, hours after pledging victory during Russia’s annual Victory Day parade in Moscow at the weekend.
‘Let’s see if the Russians really want to bring the war to an end,” Tajani told reporters in Brussels, where is he attending a European Union Foreign Affairs Council meeting at which continued European political, military, economic, and humanitarian support for war-battered Ukraine is on the agenda.
“We hope that is the case, but words must be followed by action,” Tajani said.
“We need to see what Russia’s true intentions are, if what Vladimir Putin said is true. This is obvious if we want to restart a phase of dialogue, Tajani went on.
Italy has never been and is not at war with Russia, Tajani underlined.
“We have only defended Ukraine’s right to independence. Ultimately, it is the facts that will tell,’ Tajani concluded.
Putin’s remarks on Saturday came as Russia and Ukraine observer a short three-day United States-backed ceasefire and continue prisoner-swap discussions. Broader peace talks remain stalled, however, and the two sides continue to stage attacks against each other. While Russia controls nearly one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, it has struggled to fully capture the eastern Donbas region, and Ukraine’s counteroffensives have failed to reclaim major occupied areas.
Tens of thousands of people on both sides have died in the conflict, which has left swathes of eastern Ukraine in ruins and strained Russia’s economy (also impacted by Western-led sanctions) as well as Moscow’s relations with Europe.
On Sunday, Putin said he was willing hold direct talks with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky in Moscow or a neutral country, but only after the terms of a peace deal had already been settled.
