A mistake that many international journalists make, especially when dealing with quite “byzantine” countries like Italy, is not being able to distinguish between statements aimed at domestic audiences and those aimed at foreign partners.

Crosetto had already said similar if not the same things in January, June and September 2023. All of them either in parliament, like this time, or in interviews with national newspapers. He simply does whatever it takes not to be seen as a “warmonger” domestically, showing that he helps Ukraine but with conditions and with peace as the first goal. This makes it smoother and more acceptable for the Italian parliament to approve the military packages (which the government tries to talk about as little as possible) and makes the support to Ukraine somewhat more acceptable to the public. It’s not like he can say Italy will support Ukraine whatever it takes. He is a politician after all, and not from Finland or Lithuania. But these internal statements don’t change the Italian foreign policy strategy regarding Ukraine. The conditions for military support in 2024 are the same as in 2022 and 2023. Status of the Italian military stocks aside.