ISTANBUL

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni reiterated Wednesday that Italy is ready to support European restrictive measures against Israeli settlement expansion plans and violent statements made by some Israeli officials.

"We have condemned Israeli settlement expansion plans and consider the violent statements of some Israeli officials unacceptable. This is why we stand ready to support individual European restrictive measures against them," Meloni said at the Senate ahead of the European Council summit on Thursday.

She described the 20-point plan presented by US President Donald Trump and signed in Sharm el-Sheikh as an "extremely positive and concrete development."

"We are deeply grateful to all the mediators for the diplomatic efforts that made this important step forward possible: I am referring to the governments of Egypt, Qatar, and Türkiye, but I am referring above all to US President Donald Trump, who has devoted extraordinary energy to achieving what is his unquestionable success," Meloni noted.

Emphasizing that the world now faces a "credible prospect" for a just and lasting peace in the Middle East for the first time in years, she cautioned that the balance remains "fragile."

Citing "Hamas’ violation of the cease-fire," Meloni said Italy does not agree with Israel’s retaliatory actions but stressed that Hamas must have no role in the transitional governance or the future Palestinian state.

"Hamas must accept no role in the transitional governance and the future Palestinian state, and must be disarmed to prevent it from continuing to pose a threat to regional stability," she said, underlining that these are also the "necessary preconditions" for Italy's recognition of the State of Palestine.

Reminding that Italy sent over 2,000 tons of flour and over 200 tons of other aid to the Gaza Strip as part of its Food for Gaza humanitarian operation, she vowed to continue the humanitarian support.

Meloni also voiced readiness to provide all necessary support to the Palestinian National Authority, including in training its leadership, "so that it can soon assume full governance responsibilities."

"We are ready to contribute our Carabinieri, who have been present in Jericho for years, to the training of the Palestinian police, and to the EU mission in Rafah, whose numbers we are ready to increase. I will reiterate this in person to President Abbas, with whom I have agreed to meet in Rome in early November," she added.

Position on Ukraine unchanged, Meloni reaffirms

"On Ukraine, our position does not change, and cannot change, in the face of civilian casualties, the images of cities, homes, electricity stations, and gas storage facilities systematically bombed by the Russians, with the sole and specific intent of making life impossible for the civilian population, who have been heroically resisting a large-scale conflict for nearly four years," Meloni further noted.

She reaffirmed their "firm" and "determined" support for the Ukrainian people with the aim of achieving peace.

"This peace, however, must be just, and not the result of oppression. This implies a fair solution, the fruit of a credible negotiating process, in which, clearly, no decision on Ukraine can be made without Ukraine, and no decision on European security can be made without Europe," Meloni added.

She also reiterated that Italy does not plan to send its own troops to Ukrainian territory, emphasizing that each nation will contribute to these efforts "to the extent it can and deems necessary."

"We are discussing with our EU and G7 partners further possible measures regarding frozen Russian assets, with respect to which, however, we believe—and we are not alone—that it is necessary to respect international law and the principle of legality," she added.

Meloni also underscored that European defense readiness must be developed comprehensively.

"We all recognize and support the need to protect Europe and NATO's eastern flank, but we cannot allow the EU's southern flank to be lost sight of," she said.

Italy to not back European climate law revision 'as currently formulated'

Reaffirming Italy’s support for ambitious emissions reduction targets, Meloni said the country seeks to abandon the "ideological approach" that characterized the Green Deal era.

"We believe that the best way NOT to achieve this goal is to continue pursuing an ideological, and therefore unreasonable, approach that imposes unsustainable and unattainable objectives, which damage our economic and industrial fabric, weaken European nations, and risk definitively compromising the very credibility of the European Union," she explained.

She noted that Italy will not support the European Commission's proposal to revise the European Climate Law "as currently formulated," especially if it is not accompanied by a "genuine and substantial change in approach."