Italy suspending defense agreement with Israel, says PM Meloni

Italy is suspending its defense agreement with Israel, says Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

“In consideration of the current situation, the government has decided to suspend the automatic renewal of the defense agreement with Israel,” she tells reporters as she visits a wine festival in Verona.

Defense Minister Guido Crosetto wrote his Israeli counterpart, Israel Katz, the letter suspending the Italy–Israel memorandum, which establishes a framework for defense cooperation regarding the exchange of military equipment and technological research within the armed forces.

The 2003 Memorandum of Understanding was signed under Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi, and set the stage for cooperation in defense and scientific research. The MoU was ratified by Italy in 2005, and is renewed automatically every five years.