"I expressed Italy's strongest condemnation of the farce referendums" conducted by Russia "to annex" territories of Ukraine.
Referendum of which Italy "does not recognize and will not recognize the outcome".
The secretary general of the Foreign Ministry, Ettore Francesco Sequi, said this to the Russian ambassador to Italy, Sergei Razov, summoned to the Farnesina.
"I urged the Russian authorities to revoke these illicit acts (the referendums) and to withdraw Russian forces from Ukrainian territory without conditions, completely and immediately," Sequi said in a press point after the interview with Razov, stating that Italy " it will be fully aligned with partner countries in evaluating new restrictive measures "against Russia" as a peaceful means of pressure to put an end to this war of aggression ".
"Ukraine - he added - has the right to liberate the occupied territories within its internationally recognized borders. And we will continue to provide strong support to Ukraine for as long as necessary".
Sequi explained that he had summoned the ambassador as part of a "coordinated action with other EU partners" to send "a common, firm and unequivocal signal" to Moscow.