Italy suspends defence agreement with Israel amid Middle East conflict
German chancellor also raises concern about 'de facto partial annexation' of the West Bank
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has said her government has decided to suspend the automatic renewal of a defence agreement with Israel, citing ongoing conflicts in the Middle East.
“In light of the current situation, the government has decided to suspend the automatic renewal of the defence agreement with Israel,” Meloni was quoted as saying by several Italian news agencies, without giving details of the deal.
Meanwhile, on Monday, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz voiced “grave concern” over the situation in the Palestinian territories, saying a “de facto partial annexation of the West Bank” must be prevented.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz spoke by phone today with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
During the conversation, the chancellor expressed his deep concern about developments in the Palestinian territories.
“There must be no de facto partial annexation of the West Bank,” government spokesman Stefan Kornelius said in a statement.
“The chancellor encouraged Prime Minister Netanyahu to begin direct peace talks with the Lebanese government. He called for an end to hostilities in southern Lebanon,” Kornelius added.
In Italy, a 2003 Memorandum of Understanding was signed under Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi, and set the stage for cooperation in defence and scientific research.
The MoU was ratified by Italy in 2005 and is renewed automatically every five years.
Since Israel’s response to the October 7 Hamas attacks, Meloni’s right-wing government has been put under pressure over its position on the conflict.
In September, she said at the UN that Italy will back some European Union sanctions against Israel over the war in the Gaza Strip, saying that Israel’s actions had crossed a line “violating humanitarian norms, causing a slaughter of civilians.”
Meloni and Netanyahu had met in Rome in March 2023, vowing to usher in a “quantum leap” in Italian-Israeli cooperation.
According to data, Italy was one of only three countries to export “major conventional arms” to Israel from 2020 to 2024, supplying light helicopters and naval guns.
In October 2024, the Italian government announced it had suspended all shipments of military equipment to Israel.