Italy's eighth 'aid package' to reach Ukraine soon: Deputy PM Tajani

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
17 Feb 2024 21:28
1 Shares

Italy's Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani announced that Italy's eighth aid package to Ukraine would arrive in Kiev soon, and clarified that the aid extends beyond military support.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani listens to questions during a press conference on G7 at the Foreign Ministry in Rome, Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024 (AP)

Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani stated on Saturday that arms from Italy's eighth aid package to Ukraine would reach Kiev in the coming days. He added that Italy is making every effort to assist Kiev and clarified that the aid provided is not exclusively military in nature.

"Parliament has approved the eighth package, and I think it will arrive in Ukraine these days," Tajani said at the annual Munich Security Conference.

Tajani also referenced the agreement made on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, which stipulates that Ukraine will receive a 200 million euro ($215 million) loan aimed at restoring Ukraine's national power grid.

Italy has enacted eight packages of military assistance for Kiev, with the most recent being approved in December. In the same month, Italy's Council of Ministers approved a measure to provide military, humanitarian, and financial aid to Ukraine through 2024.

Italy has been an important contributor to military support via the training of troops and the provision of arms and weapons to Kiev. On January 27, 2023, the Italian Minister of Defence and the French Minister of the Armed Forces announced the decision to donate jointly a medium-long range air defence and anti-missile system SAMP/T to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, as well as to organize and conduct jointly the training of Ukrainian personnel on the same system. The remaining weapons supplied by Italy to Ukraine are largely undisclosed.

According to statistics from the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, which tracks international aid provided to Ukraine, Italy has contributed support totaling 1.3 billion euros, placing it 15th on the list of donor countries. Approximately 700 million euros of this support constitutes weapons and military equipment.

Italian support for Ukraine dwindles

A survey conducted by La Repubblica daily published in January revealed that public approval of military aid for Ukraine has hit an all-time low in Italy, with only 42% in favor of further military supply. The Demos research institution and the University of Urbino conducted a poll of 1,298 Italians in December.

It discovered that the proportion of Italians in favor of continuing to give military help to Ukraine decreased from 50% in April 2022 to 47% in September 2023 to 42% presently, while the proportion opposing to ongoing military supplies climbed to 57%.

Notably, 56% of voters in the opposition left-centrist Democratic Party support sustained military aid to Ukraine, compared to 46%-48% of voters in the ruling coalition, according to the publication.

The opposition populist Five Star Movement party has the lowest level of support among voters, at 34%.