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Draghi, respect NATO commitments or skip the majority agreement

2022-03-29T20:47:47.763Z


The premier sees Conte at Palazzo Chigi holding the point on the issue. 'I respect NATO commitments or the majority agreement falls'. Government sources point out: 'With Conte from 2018 to 2021 + 17% defense expenses'. Read worried. On Thursday the vote in the Chamber on the dl Ukraine - Draghi signs the decree on the assistance of refugees (ANSA)


Prime Minister Mario Draghi pulls straight on the increase in military spending to 2% of GDP in compliance with the NATO requirements and obtains the support of the Quirinale after an interview with Sergio Mattarella at Colle.

Strong also of the axis with the Head of State, the Prime Minister decisively sinks his blows by making it clear that one cannot escape from the commitments with NATO, on pain of breaking the pact that holds the majority in place.

A strong message, addressed to the entire government coalition and above all to the 5-star movement.

The head of the Government has this line filtered from Palazzo Chigi after having seen the President of the Republic in the evening: a meeting preceded by a face with Giuseppe Conte, Draghi goes up to Colle in the late afternoon to update the head of state on the matter of military spending,

which has been heating up the political debate for days.

With the possibility of an agreement between the parties on the increase of defense resources having faded, the government is therefore preparing to secure the dl Ukraine with confidence in the Senate chamber.

But the clash explodes in the committees where the executive welcomes FdI's agenda on reaching the 2% threshold for defense, which therefore is not voted on.

The pentastellated senators, who were determined to speak out against the Brothers of Italy proposal, however, do not agree and define the government's choice as "unacceptable".

Conte talks about it with Draghi at Palazzo Chigi: an hour and a half interview, very tense, according to what is said in parliamentary circles, at the end of which the leader of the Movement clarifies that a government crisis is not on the horizon, but "we have the right to be heard".

The secretary of the Pd Enrico Letta follows the events with concern.

The leader of IV sinks: "Draghi is a statesman, Conte is a populist. We are with Draghi and Italy".

Net of individual discordant votes or twists, the 5 stars in the Senate should still say yes to confidence in Ukraine.

But the leader of the pentastellati warns: "In the Def there are no leaks forward" on the increase in military spending.

A stumbling block at the moment removed since the document on economics and finance, initially foreseen in the CDM on Thursday, will arrive on the table of Palazzo Chigi only on 5 or 6 April after the completion of the Mef and accounting department.

.

In order to draw up more accurate forecasts, it was decided to wait for the Istat data on GDP which will be released next Tuesday.

But the shift at this point also serves to soften the access to the political climate on the increase in military spending.

To give meaning to the decision with which Palazzo Chigi is addressing this topic there is also the decision to disclose the data on the defense budget under the Conte governments. "In 2018 it recorded about 21 billion, in 2021 24.6 billion , "an increase of 17%", numbers compared with the increase of 5.6% between 2021 and 2022.

With the confidence that the provision should secure Thursday in the Senate, the clash in the meantime is consumed in the two reference commissions: Foreign and Defense.

"It is unacceptable that the government has decided to accept the FdI agenda despite the strong opposition of the main majority force. Despite our insistent request, the president of the Defense Commission, Roberta Pinotti, did not want to put it to the vote. fear? "thundered M5S vice president Paola Taverna and senators Vito Crimi, Gianluca Ferrara, Ettore Licheri, Andrea Cioffi and Gianluca Castaldi.

Giorgia Meloni's party rejoices: "The political objective has been achieved for us".

And the president of the senators of FdI Luca Ciriani turns between the lines to M5s and LeU, insinuating the doubt also on the   

In the evening then Conte records

: "Draghi wanted to say that it is important to respect the NATO commitments: I explained that I have never questioned the 2% trend as it was not questioned by the previous prime ministers. let's say this horizon of 2024, we will have a significant peak: it is 15 billion and, frankly, I believe that citizens and the country now have other priorities. This does not mean that Italy does not respect the agreements. This will not be said and I didn't say it myself. "

Thus the M5s leader Giuseppe Conte at Di Martedì, on La7.

Source: ansa

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