... and Europe: From Romanticism to Pragmatism
The new Italian government also does not support the sanctions against Russia. Giuseppe Conte has repeatedly confirmed the desire to take more active steps towards normalizing relations with Moscow. However, Italy did not officially oppose the sanctions imposed against Crimea, which were extended just last week. This gives cause to believe that it will not oppose the rest of the sanctions package and will likely use it as a bargaining chip for other items on its agenda – items that have far ...
... Second, the Italian leader is struggling internally to convince voters to back his package of constitutional reforms next December. The “anti-EU” card is a very catchy propaganda tool to respond to the right-wing parties’ claims that Italy is subdued to Brussels’ diktats. Third, it sends an important message to those domestic economic actors (notably the agri-food sector) which have experienced losses as a result of the sanctions (and relative counter-sanctions) against Moscow. Fourth, Renzi has exploited the political weakness of some partners like France and Germany (which are also coping with an internal opposition towards the sanctions policy), which do not want ...
... largest trading partner of Russia after China, Germany and the Netherlands, as well as the fifth country for exports to Russia behind China, Germany, the United States and Belarus[2]. Moreover, analysing business data, it turns out that, despite the sanctions, Italy is the country that has recorded, after China, the lowest percentage reduction in exports to Moscow between 2014 and 2015 (-35.7% compared to -31.7% for China)[3]. The most exported products concerns the agro-industrial sector, especially those ...
... level?
Personally, I don’t think that sanctions have destroyed the long-standing relationship of trust between the Italians and Russians. Businessmen from both countries only hope that the situation in Ukraine will gradually normalize and that sanctions will be lifted as soon as early 2016.
Despite tensions between the EU and Russia, Italy is trying to maintain friendly relations with Russia also at a political level. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has always showed a willingness to maintain a dialogue with Russia. He was the first EU leader to visit President Putin.
In addition,...
... perceived impact of this policy on the economy of the EU in the eyes of the public opinion, the price being paid to pursue this power politics agenda is none else but a hefty one. In this article I will focus on the actual catastrophic consequences of the sanctions on Italy, the reason of this choice resides in the status of this country as one of the former leading economic partner of Russia in Europe, second only to Germany.
Since the enforcing of the sanctions in the first quarter of 2014 the trade of goods between ...
