Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio on
Friday called for an immediate truce in Ukraine to evacuate
civilians.
Di Maio said there was "no alternative to a diplomatic solution
to seek, in the immediate future, a (general) ceasefire or at
least a ceasefire at a local level that would permit the
evacuation of civilians".
Di Maio told a press conference with Dutch counterpart Wopke
Hoekstra that "we don't want to give up flanking the firmness
of sanctions with attempts to seek a diplomatic solution to the
crisis".
He said "we continue to insist on the channel of international
mediation despite news of bombing and cowardly attacks on
civilians.
"We reaffirm the Italian government's firm conviction that there
is no alternative to a diplomatic solution".
Di Maio added that an EU asylum pact was needed to cope with the
millions of refugees fleeing the Russsia-Ukraine war.
Noting that they are estimated to top five million, he said "the
response to this dramatic phenomenon can only be elaborated at a
common level and be based on a solidarity approach."
he said the crisis "urgently forces us to make progress in talks
on the new migration and asylum pact, continuing discussions on
the EU migration reform, which have received a strong impetus
under the French presidency."
On efforts to try to wean Italy and Europe off Russian gas, the
foreign minister said he would soon make another international
mission after those to Algeria, Qatar, Congo and Angola.
Earlier Di Maio said the Russia-Ukraine war is Russian
President Vladimir Putin's war and only he can stop or enlarge
it.
"This is Putin's war and only Putin can stop it or in a wicked
way think of enlarging it ," he told RAI TV.
"But there will never come actions that contribute to an
escalation from us".
Di Maio said he agreed with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken
that Putin was pretending to want peace.
"One thing is apparent to all: 10 days ago (Ukrainian President
Volodymyr) Zelensky made an overture to Putin, but on the other
side we are seeing a Russia that is only seeking to make believe
that it wants a peace accord, but continues to strike not only
military targets but also civilian havens."
Di Maio added that of the around 2,600 Italians in Ukraine at
the start of Russia's invasion on Thursday February 24, some 326
have remained there and "I think that number will continue to
drop in the coming hours".
He said the Italian foreign ministry's crisis unit was working
every day to bring them out.
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