Italy suspends the renewal of its defense agreement with Israel

“Given the current situation, the government has decided to suspend the automatic renewal of the defense agreement with Israel,” justified Giorgia Meloni.

A chill between Rome and Tel Aviv. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced on Tuesday, April 14, that her government would “suspend the automatic renewal” of the defense agreement between Italy and Israel. “Given the current situation, the government has decided to suspend the automatic renewal of the defense agreement with Israel,” declared Giorgia Meloni, as reported by the Italian news agencies Ansa and AGI.

An Italian diplomatic source confirmed to AFP that the agreement had been suspended, stating: “It would have been politically difficult to maintain it.” Originally ratified in 2006 and tacitly renewed every five years, the defense agreement was coming to an end these days. It governs cooperation between the two countries in defense industry, military training, research, and information technologies, among others.

Meanwhile, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs asserted that this suspension would not affect its security. “We have no security agreement with Italy. We have a memorandum of understanding dating back many years that has never contained substantive provisions. This will not affect Israel’s security,” said Oren Marmorstein.

Additionally, U.S. President Donald Trump strongly criticized Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni for refusing to involve her country in the war in Iran, expressing being “shocked” and disappointed by her lack of “courage.” He stated, “Do they [Italians] appreciate that your president is not helping us get that deal? Do they like that? I can’t imagine that. I am shocked. I thought she had courage, but I was wrong,” declared the head of state in an interview with the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera.

The Italian opposition had been requesting for months that the government suspend this renewal. Tensions between Italy and Israel escalated last week after the Italian government accused Israeli forces of firing warning shots at a convoy of Italian UN peacekeepers in Lebanon.