Leader of the 5-Star Movement: Peace negotiations between Moscow and Kiev are completely absent

Giuseppe Conte: The Ukraine war impoverished Europe

Conte: If we do not act in a spirit of solidarity, we will all lose.

AFP

The leader of the Italian Five Star Movement, Giuseppe Conte, who was prime minister in the previous government, has expressed concern about the policies that may be taken by the new Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, who belongs to the right wing, after her "Brothers of Italy" party won the elections.

In an interview with the German magazine Der Spiegel, he spoke about what the future holds for Italy as well, with regard to the war in Ukraine, the energy crisis and unified European decisions in this regard.

Here are excerpts from that interview:

■ Can you explain how this right-wing nationalism thinks?

You had a fair amount of interaction with her when you were prime minister.

■■ Italy was the first country in Europe to be affected by this epidemic (Corona).

We had no instruction manual when we imposed the first lockdown.

It was a historic challenge, and for many people, it was a matter of life or death.

During that time, I did not experience Giorgia Meloni as a responsible opposition politician.

At crucial moments, it repeatedly pitted itself against the government on the cheap.

When we wanted to close everything, she wanted to open everything.

And when we wanted to open the country again, she wanted to close it.

Instead of showing solidarity, she wanted to provoke and take advantage of fear.

■ What does the future hold for Italy now?

Rome faces difficult decisions regarding the war in Ukraine, arms deliveries and the energy crisis.

■■ I am confused by the NATO strategy.

His goal is clearly for Ukraine to achieve a military victory over Russia.

But this will inevitably lead to a military escalation.

It is not entirely clear if and when the Russian defeat will be achieved.

The risk of nuclear conflict is growing.

Peace negotiations have completely disappeared from the horizon, and I think this is a mistake.

The accusations of being close to President Vladimir Putin, which are frivolously leveled at Italy and elsewhere, are only intended to prevent democratic discourse.

Those responsible for the current strategy should also tell us what geopolitical perspectives they see for the coming decades.

■ What does this war mean for the European Union?

■■ It is as shocking as the pandemic, with devastating economic and social consequences.

But this time, unfortunately, the war is impoverishing and weakening Europe.

In late February, Germany announced an allocation of €100 billion for rearmament.

It would have been better if we had immediately expanded our common European defense.

This would have improved security for all of us, and saved a lot of money.

It could have been cheaper for Berlin.

We are now experiencing the same with energy policy.

■ What do you mean by that?

■■ Germany allocates 200 billion euros to its companies and citizens to protect them from rising natural gas prices.

The German government can afford it, but it represents another departure from the idea of ​​European solidarity.

It does not solve our common problem, because our economies are closely intertwined.

Germany will not be able to grow if there is no growth in its closest partners in the European Union.

■ What is your interpretation of the policies pursued by Berlin?

■■ It goes against the spirit of Europe when everyone only cares about themselves.

We did the same during the pandemic and engaged in a bidding war against each other for vaccines.

We must not allow one country to save itself while another cannot, because it cannot make enough offers for vaccines.

■ Then what next?

■■ Will we close Italian factories when gas is scarce?

What will German car companies do next?

At the beginning of the pandemic, we saw what happened: when we had to suspend production during the first shutdown, factories in Germany quickly stopped.

Unfortunately, Europe has not learned from the experience of the pandemic.

• “I did not test Giorgia Meloni as a responsible opposition politician.

At crucial moments, it repeatedly pitted itself against the government in a cheap way.”

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