Italian newspapers slam Russian election ‘interference’

Italy’s main newspapers issued front-page warnings Friday of alleged Russian interference in the upcoming election, in response to comments from Russia’s former president urging Europeans to “punish” their “stupid” governments.

Dmitry Medvedev on Thursday called for Europeans to be “not only outraged at the actions of their governments... but to hold them to account and punish them for their obvious stupidity”.

“Act, European neighbours! Don’t remain silent! Demand accountability!” he said on Telegram.

Following Medvedev’s comments, The Repubblica and Il Messaggero front pages shrieked of Russian “interference” Friday, while the Corriere della Sera said Russia was “agitating” political waters ahead of the vote. 

The government of outgoing Prime Minister Mario Draghi has condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, providing Kyiv with military and humanitarian support. 

But that support could shift with the likely victory of a right-wing alliance in general elections on September 25.

While Giorgia Meloni’s frontrunning Brothers of Italy party stands with Ukraine, Matteo Salvini’s League and Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italia have long nurtured ties with Russia and its President Vladimir Putin.

Italy’s Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio accused Salvini and other leaders of failing to condemn what he said was clear Russian interference.

The head of Italy’s centre-left Democratic Party (PD), Enrico Letta, said Moscow was attempting to “change Italian foreign policy, which since the beginning has been very clearly on the side of the European Union and NATO”.

Letta also called for Salvini’s League to break off a cooperation pact it signed with Putin’s United Russia party in 2017.

Salvini, who has long admired Putin, even wearing T-shirts emblazoned with the Russian leader’s face, defended himself Friday, saying he had “not been to Russia for years”. 

“Russia does not have the slightest influence on the Italian elections,” he told journalists in Milan. 

Medvedev, who was Putin’s stand-in president between 2008 and 2012, is now deputy head of the Security Council, but is widely believed to have little influence on Russian politics.

Allegations of meddling by Moscow are not new. In July, Russia rejected “bizarre” accusations of election interference in Italy’s election campaign, which Russia’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said was nothing more than a “trite myth”.