European Political Community summit shows there is no '1st-tier, 2nd-tier Europe': Italian premier

By Burak Bir

LONDON (AA) - Italy’s prime minister on Thursday said that the European Political Community (EPC) summit being held in Moldova is important to show that there is “no first-tier and second-tier Europe.”

"We are holding this summit in a time which the (recent) crises have revealed weaknesses, including some European ones," ANSA news agency quoted Giorgia Meloni as saying in Bulboaca, Moldova.

Moldova is hosting the second European Political Community Summit following the first meeting in Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, last October.

Touching on the war in Ukraine, Meloni stressed that Italy is on the "front line" in supporting Kyiv.

"We are holding the summit in Moldova, which is another country under threat and it would be involved by now if the Ukrainians had not defended themselves as they are," the Italian prime minister said.

Meanwhile, the news agency reported that Italy will increase the missile production of naval artillery systems, munitions and bullet-proof vests to give them to Ukraine as part of an upcoming package of aid.

Some 45 heads of state and government are participating in this year's EPC summit, which is taking place at the Mimi Castle in Bulboaca, a vineyard about 35 kilometers (21 miles) away from the capital Chisinau.