The timidity of Meloni and Tajani contrasts, when it comes to peace plan for Ukraine, with the decision of Defense Minister Guido Crosetto. After the White House announced a plan to end the war between Moscow and Kiev , the first statements from the Italian government also arrive. If the Prime Minister and her Foreign Minister are trying to maintain a position as equidistant as possible between Brussels and Washington, it is from Palazzo Baracchini that doubts are being raised about some parts of the document sponsored by Trump and on which the tycoon has launched an ultimatum to President Volodymyr Zelensky : “The proposed plan is in my opinion very harsh towards Ukraine – the minister wrote on his X profile – and contains points that I think can never be accepted, but I consider it the starting point of a negotiation that we all hope for and to which we must all commit ourselves relentlessly”. And he doesn't skimp on direct criticism of Trump:"I said it yesterday and I'll reiterate it today. Trump has now made us understand, with the tariffs, with Gaza, and in many other scenarios, what his tactics are. He provokes, cajoles, forces, caresses one day, slaps the next."

In his lengthy speech, Crosetto clarifies, however, that"the only thing that matters and should matter is the reaction of the parties to Trump's plan to end the war in Ukraine. The first point is that both Russia and Ukraine are discussing it; both nations have said that a plan can be discussed that will lead to the end of the war. This is the most important fact. Not because Ukraine, which has been calling for a just peace for three years, says so, but because Russia has said so too. Now, a thousand steps are needed, a thousand discussions, a thousand fractures to heal, a thousand forcings, a thousand interlocutions to reach a mediation that will be accepted first and foremost by the people who have sacrificed themselves for 1,003 days trying to defend their existence. I purposely wrote 'people' because that is what we have tried to help resist over these years: the Ukrainian people and nation."

The American strategy of giving priority to Moscow's positions, as demonstrated on other occasions, does not sit well with the Italian Defense Chief, who comments on Trump's behavior again:"For weeks (Trump, ed. note) has pressured Russia using the oil lever and now he offers it a way out of the cul de sac into which it has gotten itself. It is therefore wrong to ask other nations or Europe or the international community what they think of the 28 points (of the plan, ed. note). It is right that no one speaks but everyone works to construct 28, 25, or 32 points acceptable to the parties, which put an end to the war, allow Ukraine to have a secure future and avert the spectre of the war spreading to Europe. I repeat, I am not interested in an opinion on the plan but in using it to restart the dialogue and silence the sound horrendous than the hundreds of bombs, missiles , and drones that in the last 24 hours, as in the previous 1,002 days, have massacred Ukraine. It must be done immediately. In the last 24 hours, more than 1,000 human beings, Russians and Ukrainians, have died. As in the previous 24 hours and as in the next 24. This is war, this is the enemy we must fight, the adversary we must defeat. Perhaps this imperfect plan gives us the opportunity to try. Let us work to make it fair and possible.”

Her words forcefully intervene in a debate that Meloni and Tajani were trying to keep at a less confrontational level. The prime minister had limited herself to declaring that"Italy is ready to collaborate with its European and American partners to achieve a just peace," while the head of the Foreign Ministry emphasized that "Europe must be a protagonist" in the agreement on Ukraine,"it could not be otherwise, given that it has imposed sanctions on the Russian Federation. To reach a comprehensive agreement, European participation is also necessary." The government will have to decide which path to take with the United States and Europe. But first, it must also clarify matters internally.