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Italy and Romania are part of a common family and, together, prove unity and solidarity, stated, on Monday, the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Luigi Di Maio, who is on official visit to Bucharest.
"At several kilometers from the border we are watching a disaster and, beside the fact that there are very many fatalities, we also have many refugees - 2.8 million. With Minister Aurescu we agree that we must firmly condemn the Russian Federation for the attack and aggression on Ukraine and to express our solidarity for Ukraine. Italy and its NATO allies support the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine and we are working tirelessly to constrain Russia to stop this war through sanctions that are harder and harder to support. At the same time, we are continuing on the path of diplomacy, that we have never wanted to interrupt and in which we still want to believe. Even in this dark moment, we must have the conviction that there is no alternative to the diplomatic solution. The objective is a ceasefire and for the humanitarian corridors to support refugees be allowed," said Di Maio, during a joint press conference held together with Romanian Foreign Minister, Bogdan Aurescu.
He added that his presence in Bucharest and in Chisinau wants to show the support that the Government of Italy is granting to the current security context.
"Thank you for the welcome that Romania makes to Italian refugees, proving solidarity and generosity," the minister completed.
"Italy is fulfilling its role and we have supported the proposal to use the temporary Directive of March 4 of the European Council. Italy is helping the Government and people of Ukraine in the humanitarian realm and, last week, we made a decision to allot 110 million euro as support for the Ukrainian budget," said Di Maio.
The Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs said that measures need to be taken at the level of the EU in order to not depend on Russian gas imports.
"We must find the solutions, to find a European strategy for this Russian gas to not be needed, to find a possibility to transit and supply gas. Furthermore, the European Union must establish a maximum limit for the price of gas in order to avoid speculations," he said.
Di Maio pointed out that, in terms of bilateral relations, Italy is granting particular importance to Romania as a European and Euro-Atlantic partner.
"We are one of the first investors in Romania, given the companies registered and as a commercial partner of Bucharest at the global level. (...) The vibrant Romanian community in Italy, but also many Italians working and living in Romania stand testimony to the relations between our countries within the European Union," the Minister emphasized.
