The Corriere della Sera reported the news that the Moscow Defense Ministry announced that eleven Italian professional fighters they would have died in combat on Ukrainian territory. Russia has labeled them as mercenaries, like the other 50 compatriots who would have joined the International Battalion under the orders of the Kiev general staff. Neither the identities of the deceased nor the place where they would have lost their lives in combat are known. Is it propaganda or reality? It is certain that Rome, Corsera specifies, has never confirmed the presence of Italian citizens at the front. At the Farnesina, they believe that the announcement is a gimmick by Moscow in retaliation for Italian foreign policy, which is openly anti-Russian. It would be a real intimidation of Italy, our diplomats emphasize. A government official explains that Moscow is annoyed by our attitude, considered provocative, as we would be helping Zelensky by sending weapons to the Ukrainians and supporting sanctions, instead of facilitating a solution to the conflict. Moscow also has a poisoned tooth with Rome for the expulsion of their thirty diplomats from Italy, a decision that was taken by the Draghi government, in agreement with the other European partners.
In the official note, sent by the Russian embassy to Palazzo Chigi where, it is written of the Italian fighters it is also emphasized that "it can be assumed that sunk losses will increase". Then the fate of whom is specified would be taken prisoner"the norms of international humanitarian law do not apply to mercenaries ”.
It is certain that there is no certainty of Italians in Ukraine, except for the video confirmation of Julia Shiffer, interviewed by the television program Reservoir Dogs. A month ago - as Giovanni Bianconi had told in Corriere - to the anti-terrorism officials there was a presence of 17 Italians in Ukraine: nine deployed with Kiev, eight with Moscow's troops. Moreover, all of them are criminally prosecutable, given that the Italian law prohibits hostile acts towards a foreign state.