Italy's embrace of the Belt and Road, China's new Silk Road, was a "big mistake": the leader of Fratelli d'Italia, Giorgia Meloni, says it in a written interview with Cna, the agency of Taiwan, adding, on the confirmation of membership in 2024: "if I found myself having to sign the renewal of that memorandum tomorrow morning, I would hardly see the political conditions".
Meloni specifies that with a center-right government "it is certain that
Taiwan will be a fundamental issue for Italy
", defining China's threats as "unacceptable".
"I have been following closely with unease" what is happening around Taiwan.
Meloni cites many events that have occurred since the signing of the 2019 Memorandum of Understanding to join the Belt and Road, including
the Chinese crackdown on Hong Kong activists, discrimination against Uyghurs and other minorities, the ambiguous stance on the Russian invasion of Hong Kong. Ukraine
and the repeated demonstrations of force against Taiwan, in support of its stance against renewal.
"I hope Beijing will take the time to soften its tone and do something concrete towards respect for democracy, human rights and international law", she underlines, criticizing the tensions in the Taiwan Strait.
"This is an unacceptable behavior, which we strongly condemn together with all the democracies of the free world," he observes on the point.
The European Union must "deploy all the political and diplomatic weapons at its disposal" and "put as much pressure as possible" to prevent China from provoking any military conflict in the Strait, underlines the leader of the Brothers of Italy, evaluating Taiwan as a commercial partner strategic for Italy and Europe: "Let's not forget that the EU is also a key outlet market for China, which risks being closed if it decides to attack Taipei".
If he is premier, Meloni promises to work to ensure that the 'Global gateway' of
EU - which aims to push investments in infrastructure development around the world from 2021 to 2027 - is helping countries that see no alternative to Beijing.
Furthermore, countering the influence of the authoritarian leaders of Russia and China in the Western Balkans and parts of Africa, the Indo-Pacific and Latin America would be a priority of his government.
"Sovereignty is defended militarily, as well as in the area of cybersecurity and in terms of freedom of information, against Russian and Chinese attempts at interference," adds Meloni, urging greater support for Ukraine.
"We must make a political and cultural effort to explain to everyone that the aggression against Ukraine is only the beginning of an attempt to create a new world order against the West. And if Ukraine loses, the consequences will be very serious for all of us ", he concludes.