W“When a people votes, they are always right.” This was what Italy’s Vice Prime Minister and Transport Minister Matteo Salvini said on Monday. The statement was made offensive by the sentence that the party leader of the right-wing national Lega had previously said: “There was an election in Russia, we take note of that.”

Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani promptly reprimanded Salvini, an avowed Putin fan. He also holds the position of deputy head of government in the cabinet and leads the Christian Democratic party Forza Italia: “When it comes to the elections in Russia, it should be emphasized that they were characterized by strong, even violent pressure. Alexei Navalnyj was excluded from this vote by assassination, and we have all seen the images of soldiers in the polling stations.” Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, leader of the right-wing conservative Brothers of Italy, said in an interview on public broadcaster RAI broadcast on Tuesday morning: ” The government's position is very clear. And the clarity that we have shown in foreign policy is evidence of the unity of the coalition.”