An EU nation suspends its defense agreement with Israel

(SeaPRwire) –   Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni criticizes Israel’s military campaign in Lebanon

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has declared the suspension of a defense pact with Israel, citing escalating tensions over the Middle East conflict.

Italy, whose right-wing administration was considered one of Israel’s strongest EU allies, has grown more vocal in its criticism of the continuing military operations in Lebanon. Israeli airstrikes there have resulted in 2,124 fatalities since the beginning of March.

Addressing an audience in Verona on Tuesday, Meloni stated her government chose to “suspend the automatic renewal” of the pact “in light of the current situation.”

“When there are things we don’t agree with, we act accordingly,” Meloni was quoted as saying by Reuters.

The agreement, which was approved in 2005 and had been routinely extended every five years, covers collaboration in defense industrial and procurement matters, the import and export of military hardware, the exchange of technical data, and the training of personnel.

This follows an incident last week where Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani called in the Israeli ambassador to Rome, Jonathan Peled, after Israeli forces discharged warning shots near an Italian peacekeeping convoy outside Beirut. Meloni labeled the event “completely unacceptable.”

On Monday, Tajani denounced what he called “unacceptable attacks by Israel against the civilian population” in Lebanon. In retaliation, the Israeli Foreign Ministry summoned the Italian diplomatic representative.

A number of European nations have moved to formally recognize Palestinian statehood and have enacted complete or partial bans on arms sales to Israel since 2023. Last year, Spain terminated several contracts with Israeli defense firms, valued at a reported $1.18 billion. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has characterized Israel’s actions in Gaza as genocide, an allegation Israel rejects.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has contended that Israel is “defending Europe” through its conflicts with Iran, Hamas, and the Lebanese pro-Palestinian militia Hezbollah. In a Tuesday address, Netanyahu charged European countries with displaying “deep moral weakness” for failing to back Israel.