Tajani: “Israel has the right to defend itself”. Schlein: “Never with Iran but Netanyahu must be stopped”

"There can be no ambiguity in the face of a nuclear threat: Iran cannot equip itself with an atomic bomb. According to Israeli intelligence, Tehran could have had 10 atomic bombs within six months." Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks before the Foreign Affairs Committees of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. At the center of his information hearing: developments in the situation in Iran after the Israeli attack and the Iranian response. Many deputies and senators are present, including the secretary of the Democratic Party Elly Schlein , including the majority group leaders. For the government, in addition to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Reforms Casellati and the Minister of Public Administration Zangrillo are present. The opposition is pressing Tajani and, while thanking him for his timely presence in Parliament to take stock of the situation, they repeatedly ask what the Italian government's line is. Is it with Trump who applauded Netanyahu 's action? This is the repeated request. "Diplomacy is needed, politics is needed. The Constitution says that Italy repudiates war and the government must therefore be consistent – ​​comments the secretary of the Democratic Party, Elly Schlein – Trump should have resolved the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East in one day and instead now there is the risk that a global conflict will open up" then asking the Italian government "not to crush the country on the alternating moods" of the tycoon.

“Israel has the right to protect itself”

The minister reiterates what Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said: Tehran cannot “under any circumstances” acquire nuclear weapons, but to avoid escalation “we must keep a channel of dialogue open with Iran”. According to Israeli intelligence, Minister Tajani explains, “in less than six months Iran could have had ten atomic bombs and over two thousand ballistic missiles to launch towards Israel and beyond”. This would have been “an absolutely alarming picture, confirmed unequivocally by the recent report of the International Atomic Energy Agency which denounced Iran’s violation of its obligations on the subject of uranium enrichment. Concerns shared with me by the director general of the United Nations Nuclear Agency, Rafal Grossi , with whom I am in constant contact and whom I have spoken to several times, including in recent days, before and after the start of the Israeli military operation”.

And precisely in light of the intelligence information gathered by Tel Aviv's secret services, "Israel has the right to protect itself". The Iranian military program represented "an imminent existential threat to the entire region and the entire international community - explains Tajani - Israel has the right to defend itself from a possible nuclear attack and I reiterated this to Israeli President Herzog". Shortly before, speaking to Tg1 on Iran's nuclear program, the minister referred to the report of the United Nations Agency "according to which Iran has violated the rules and gone beyond the red line regarding the construction of the atomic weapon. Therefore, the Israeli observations are absolutely well-founded on the basis of an independent report that comes from the UN agency".

“War threatens a crucial route for Italy”

"This escalation" between Israel and Iran, Tajani warns, "again puts at risk the freedom of navigation, in a maritime route that is crucial for Italy and for global trade. It is therefore evident that the implications of a prolonged military clash between Israel and Iran would be extremely significant: the repercussions would be felt not only in terms of regional security, but also in terms of economic, energy, humanitarian and migration. This is why the Italian government is at the forefront of promoting de-escalation"

“Israeli military operation set to last weeks”

The Israeli attacks on Iran will continue for a long time. He then claims, reporting to the Chamber and Senate, also the contents of the conversation with the Israeli Foreign Minister Gden Sàar . "The military operation, as explained by Sàar, appears destined to last several days, if not weeks", adds the deputy prime minister. No one had predicted the Israeli attack on Iran, he observes. Assuring, also, that the Italians in the Middle East "are all well, after the attack by Israel on Iran and the retaliation by Tehran". The Italians in the Middle East, continues the Forza Italia Foreign Minister, "are about 50,000 of which 20,000 in Israel and 500 in Iran" and "at the moment there have been no reports of critical situations".

“We support US-Iran negotiations”

Tajani believes it is essential that Iran does not interrupt the dialogue with the United States on its nuclear program. "Now more than ever it is essential not to sever the thread of dialogue," he said during the hearing at the Chamber and Senate. "Italy supports the negotiations between the United States and Iran. The priority objective continues to be a diplomatic solution to the crisis. We hope that tomorrow the sixth meeting can be held in Muscat. We invite Iran to be present in Oman." The minister spoke about it directly with his Iranian colleague Abbas Araghchi . "The dialogue with Tehran is frank and open. I have called for moderation and asked to work towards de-escalation," he added. He insists: "It is time to put an end to the escalation in the Middle East, whether it is Iran or Gaza, and to let diplomacy act. Our primary interest is to guarantee stability and security in the Middle East. Now more than ever is the time to reconnect the threads of dialogue. I spoke about it a little while ago with the Egyptian Foreign Minister who presented a proposal for Gaza that we support with great conviction - continues Tajani - we must avoid further humanitarian tragedies". Therefore, he reiterates, "the time has come to negotiate, stop and let diplomacy do the talking".

The reactions

“We ask the Italian government to be consistent with our Constitution: to slow down the escalation, to promote de-escalation. And only this: Netanyahu must be stopped,” Elly Schlein , secretary of the Democratic Party, spoke in the Chamber. “No one has sympathy for the regime in Tehran that we have always opposed and will continue to oppose by supporting the Iranian opposition. The point is that a unilateral action like Netanyahu’s risks destabilizing the region and delegitimizing the negotiating bodies that were working towards a shared objective: that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. With this unilateral attack by Netanyahu, an escalation is starting that can give rise to a global conflict,” the Democratic leader insists. Always specifying: “We will not allow the attack on Iran to make us forget Gaza.”

After listening to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the first to speak was the Foreign Affairs Director of Iv Ivan Scalfarotto , who once again asked the minister for "more caution for the future", after having "reassured him on the eve of the Israeli attack that there were no signs of imminent attacks". Benedetto Della Vedova (Più Europa) explains: "It is obvious that we all hope for a de-escalation, but I would have preferred - in the deafening absence of the European Union - that Meloni was part of the trio of Macron, Merz and Starmer who managed to say at least two clear things: that there is strong concern and opposition to the Iranian nuclear program and that Israel has the right to self-defense". Azione group leader Matteo Richetti was more clear: "I don't want to minimize his intervention, minister" but "he said de-escalation 28 times, we are monitoring 18 times, but we need to talk about foreign policy now and where this country's foreign policy is taking us. We are preventing - and we all support him on this - the nuclear threat and everything that the shameful regime of Iran is denying, but with what tool? What is our government's position? Does it endorse Trump's words when he called Netanyahu's attack excellent?". Angelo Bonelli of Avs attacks: "Your government together with many governments, first and foremost Trump, have worked to delegitimize international organizations, the UN, the ICC and in the face of the delegitimization of international law, the strongest wins" and now, faced with the silence of the EU, "politics in the Middle East are not made by Europe or the West, only Netanyahu does it and you are the Foreign Minister of acknowledgement. We have always condemned the Iranian dictatorship, there is no pretence about this, but are we bringing back democracy with bombs? Haven't Iraq and Afghanistan taught us anything? We do not accept lessons from those who tell us to be equidistant and I am not equidistant at all with respect to those who kill children and are destroying Gaza. I recognize that the government is committed to humanitarian assistance, but it is not as if with the right hand we help children and then support Netanyahu's policy".

For Francesco Silvestri of the M5S, the "contents" of Tajani's speech "appear very contradictory: what sense does it make to come and tell us that you support de-escalation and at the same time support Netanyahu's action?".