Premier Giorgia Meloni fell victim before September's United Nations General Assembly meeting to a prank phonecall from two Russian comedians in which she alluded to Ukraine war fatigue and said a way out of the conflict would soon be needed, government sources said Wednesday.
Meloni was the victim of a 'fake' phone call with the pair of comics, Vovan (Vladimir Kuznetsov) and Lexus (Alexey Stolyarov), one of whom posed as the president of the African Union Commission.
The episode took place on 18 September, before the UN General Assembly.
During the phone call, the premier observed, among other things, that "there is a lot of fatigue on all sides" over the conflict in Ukraine and "the time is approaching when everyone will understand that we need a way out".
"I have some ideas on how to handle this situation," Meloni added, "but I am waiting for the right moment to put them on the table." The premier's office said Wednesday: "The Office of the Diplomatic Adviser to the (premier) regrets having been misled by an impostor who passed himself off as the President of the African Union Commission and who was put in telephone contact with Premier Meloni.
"The episode occurred on 18 September in the context of Premier's Meloni's intense efforts in those hours to strengthen relations with African leaders with whom she had important meetings on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly between 19 and 21 September".
Meloni has always publicly voiced staunch and unwavering support for Ukraine's refusal to negotiate with Russia until it drives the invaders out of all of its territory including Crimea.
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