June 21 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The current Foreign Minister, Luigi di Maio, has finally announced that he is leaving the 5 Star Movement (M5S), the party with the most representatives in the Italian Parliament, in the context of discrepancies over military aid to Ukraine.
“It is a painful choice, which I never imagined I would have to make,” he said at a press conference at the end of a day in which the split in the Movement has materialized with the collection of signatures to create its own parliamentary group.
In this new political project, he has reiterated, from the Bernini hotel in Rome, that “there will be no place for hatred, sovereignty and populism” while thanking M5S “for what it has given him”. Di Maio has also said that “the Movement will no longer be the main force in Parliament tomorrow.”
Shortly before eight in the afternoon, the Foreign Minister informed the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, of his decision in the midst of the question of whether he will continue to be the holder of this portfolio, as reported by the newspaper ‘Corriere della Sera’.
On the other hand, as revealed by the AndKronos news agency, Di Maio’s new parliamentary group will be called ‘Together for the future’. Around 60 members have left the Movement to join the new group, with a Europeanist vocation, according to reports from the elected representatives of the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
The split in the party with the most representatives in the Italian Parliament has been caused by internal discrepancies with the party’s leader, Giuseppe Conte, who opposes Prime Minister Mario Draghi for his support for military aid to Ukraine.
Di Maio backs Prime Minister Mario Draghi in his willingness to provide military aid to the Ukrainian authorities. In this sense, Draghi, who visited kyiv last week, ruled before the Senate on Tuesday that Italy will continue to support Ukraine, recalling that it is a “mandate” from Parliament.
For this reason, in his exit speech, Di Maio made it clear that, faced with such a “complex situation”, “a united Europe” is necessary that “depends on the unity of the governments of the member states, leaving aside any instrumental controversy”
“Thinking about messing with the stability of the government only for reasons related to the lack of consensus is irresponsible. This war is not a media spectacle, it is real, the victims are real,” he stressed.
Subsequently, in a statement, the M5S has “categorically” denied the rumors about its departure from the Government, alleging that they have played a fundamental role in the approval of a resolution by Parliament that contemplates ten objectives within the framework of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“Today the M5S has worked until the last minute, in the interest of all citizens, to obtain in the resolution voted by Parliament a clear reference to the need to pursue a diplomatic, non-military escalation and a greater involvement of Parliament for the speeches that will be decided at the most important international summits on the Ukrainian conflict,” he stressed.
Among those commitments are “to ensure support and solidarity for the Ukrainian people and institutions”, as well as “the EU membership applications of Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova and Georgia”.
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