The Kremlin has accused Italian President Sergio Mattarella of using “hate speech” against Russia, escalating diplomatic tensions. President Mattarella did not respond directly but reiterated his critical stance toward Vladimir Putin’s government, stating Russia’s aggression against Ukraine “has erased the balance guaranteeing peace” in Europe.
Italy’s political spectrum rallied behind the presidency, though the League party expressed support more quietly. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni explicitly denounced Russia’s move as an “unacceptable provocation.” Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, who—alongside Defense Minister Guido Crosetto—was also named on Moscow’s newly released “blacklist,” summoned Russia’s ambassador. The Russian Embassy in Italy expressed “astonishment,” claiming the Italian reaction ignored that the listed politicians “have distinguished themselves with inappropriate and undiplomatic statements.”
Moscow’s foreign ministry published the list targeting politicians from 15 countries, including Mattarella, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and French President Emmanuel Macron. It specifically cited Mattarella’s February 5 speech in Marseille, where he compared Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to the “Third Reich’s project in Europe.” Tajani and Crosetto were listed for comparing Ukrainian fighters to WWII liberators and accusing Putin of pursuing “an international order where the strong seize nations,” respectively.
Prime Minister Meloni dismissed the list as “propaganda” aimed at deflecting attention from Moscow’s “grave responsibilities,” voicing solidarity with Mattarella, Tajani, and Crosetto. Tajani echoed this, calling it “a provocation against the Italian Republic and its people.” This marks the latest in Russian critiques of Mattarella, following February accusations by Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova branding his Marseille remarks “blasphemous inventions.” She later targeted his Hiroshima speech criticizing Russia’s “dangerous nuclear narrative” and a Monte Cassino anniversary address supporting Ukraine.
The blacklist unified Italy’s parliament in backing Mattarella. Opposition leaders unanimously condemned it, with Five Star Movement’s Giuseppe Conte calling it “worthy of the worst authoritarian traditions” and PD Secretary Elly Schlein labeling it “unacceptable, grave, and inexcusable.” League leader Matteo Salvini notably refrained from comment, though party senators expressed solidarity.