Italy has decided to suspend the automatic renewal of a defence agreement with Israel due to the conflict in the Middle East, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Tuesday.
Ms Meloni's announcement comes as a surprise and marks a shift away from her traditional proximity with Israel. The Italian government has sought to distance itself from the recent Iran war and has criticised Israel's continuing war against Lebanon.
Speaking in Verona, Ms Meloni said: “In light of the current situation, the government has decided to suspend the automatic renewal of the defence agreement with Israel,” without giving details of the deal.
A source close to the matter, who requested anonymity, said Ms Meloni took the decision on Monday with her foreign and defence ministers, Antonio Tajani and Guido Crosetto, as well as Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini.
The Israeli-Italian defence co-operation agreement came into force in 2016 and is renewed automatically every five years. It was signed in 2003 after a visit by former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to Tel Aviv during which he told his Israeli counterpart Ariel Sharon that he was proud of being “Israel's most determined, sincere and closest friend”, according to Italian news agency Ansa.
The agreement includes the exchange of military equipment and technological research for the armed forces and has formed the backbone of major defence contracts under which Israel has bought Italian helicopters.
Unpopular war
The impact of the decision to suspend its renewal is unclear. A similar announcement was made a few months after the start of Israel's 2023 war against Gaza, said Maria Luisa Fantappie, a programme head at the Institute of International Affairs in Rome.
“The government has made this decision at a moment of weakness for domestic and international reasons,” Ms Fantappie told The National. “Meloni had aimed to be the contact point person of the Trump administration in Europe. Now, since the Iran war started, things have started to get more complicated for her. It's an unfinished war with direct consequences on Italian consumers.”
The Iran war is unpopular in Italy, which is highly dependent on gas imports from Qatar. “We're not at war and we don't want to get involved,” Ms Meloni said last month.
Iran's ensuing decision to block the Strait of Hormuz has caused fuel prices to soar, prompting the Italian government to cut excise duties on petrol and diesel at a cost of nearly €500 million. Analysts have warned that this could hasten a recession in Italy.
About 35 per cent of Italians fear an escalation in the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, and 21 per cent are concerned about the economic consequences, according to figures released by the consulting firm Ipsos last month.
Ms Meloni's room for manoeuvre also narrowed after she suffered a resounding defeat in last month's referendum on judicial reform. In the following days she sacked three government officials, two of whom were caught up in financial or mafia-related scandals.
The persistent crisis over the Strait of Hormuz has further strained relations between the US and Europeans, as the US President Donald Trump berated Nato allies for not re-opening the strategically important waterway. Mr Trump imposed a blockade after talks with Iran failed over the weekend.
Pope crisis
Widely viewed as the European leader with the closest access to US President Donald Trump, Ms Meloni is now distancing herself from his administration. On Monday, she issued a rare rebuttal of the American president after he criticised Pope Leo's anti-war stance.
“The Pope is the head of the Catholic Church, and it is right and normal for him to call for peace and to condemn every form of war,” Ms Meloni said in a statement.
Before the Iran war, Ms Meloni had cultivated good relations with Mr Trump and had sent her Foreign Minister to represent her at the launch of the Board of Peace. Italy also refused to recognise Palestine last year when a number of states, including France and the UK, did.
In a signal of mounting tensions with the US, Italy last month denied a US military aircraft permission to land at Naval Air Station Sigonella on Sicily. Italian media reported it was refused because it had requested clearance after departure, which is not normal procedure.
Ms Meloni said that under defence agreements, the US is allowed access to military bases in Italy, but for logistical and non-combat activities only. She has also said requests to land at these sites are considered on a case-by-case basis.
Tension in Lebanon
Israel's escalating attacks on Lebanon, despite a regional ceasefire, have also increased pressure on the UN mission that operates at the disputed Lebanon-Israel border. Italy is one of the main contributors to Unifil, with more than 750 soldiers deployed out of 7,500.
Three Indonesian peacekeepers were killed in late March – two by Israel and one by the Iran-backed Hezbollah, the UN said.
Last week, Italy summoned the Israeli ambassador to demand an explanation over shots fired at an Italian logistics convoy. The convoy immediately stopped and returned to base, the Italian Defence Ministry said.
“Endangering convoys clearly identified with the UN flag cannot be tolerated. This is serious behaviour that risks compromising the safety of peacekeepers and the credibility of the mission itself,” Defence Minister Guido Crosetto said.
