Mattarella, Tajani, and Crosetto on the Kremlin’s “Russophobes” list. Rome summons the Russian ambassador

Brussels – There is a diplomatic crisis between Italy and Russia, with the government in Rome summoning the Russian ambassador after the head of state, Sergio Mattarella, ended up on a Kremlin blacklist listing “Russophobic” Western officials. This was followed by unanimous condemnation from our political world. 

The Russian narrative and the Putinist propaganda also include the compilation of lists of personalities and profiles disliked by the Tsar, which infuriates the Italian authorities. The latest list of personalities disliked by the Kremlin affects those accused of using “hateful” and “Russophobic” language in their public appearances, including the President of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella. 

On 24 July, the Quirinal’s tenant’s name was placed on the Kremlin’s proscription list along with those of Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani and Defence Minister Guido Crosetto, triggering the bipartisan reactions of Italian politics. 

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni dismissed the incident as “yet another propaganda operation” by the Russians. At the same time, today (30 July), the head of the Farnesina summoned the Federation’s ambassador in Rome, calling the move “a provocation against the Republic and the Italian people.” For Nicola Zingaretti, leader of the Democratic Party in the EU Parliament in Strasbourg, it is “a serious and unacceptable act” that constitutes “an attack on the democratic values and institutions that we firmly defend.”

At the origin of the inclusion in this list is a passage from a speech given by the Head of State on 5 February at the University of Aix-Marseille. In accepting an honoris causa commendation, Mattarella recalled how the 30s witnessed “a progressive breakdown of the international order, which called into question the cardinal principles of peaceful coexistence, starting with the sovereignty of each nation within its recognised borders.” 

Emphasising how the “wars of conquest” stemming from the “criterion of domination” were at the heart of the “third Reich project in Europe“, the president declared that “the present Russian aggression against Ukraine is of this nature.” Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, raised her voice in the days that followed, branding Mattarella’s remarks as “blasphemous inventions” and threatening unspecified “consequences”. 

Also mentioned on the list are French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, EU High Representative for Foreign Policy Kaja Kallas, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.