Italy to send emergency supplies to Ukraine to support its energy infrastructure

By Yasin Gungor

ISTANBUL (AA) - Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni spoke by phone Sunday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying her country will dispatch emergency supplies to Ukraine to bolster its energy infrastructure.

The pledge came ahead of Zelenskyy’s scheduled trips to London, Brussels and Rome in the coming days for discussions with European leaders about the peace process with Russia, her office said in a statement.

Meloni expressed solidarity with Ukraine following the latest Russian attacks, the statement said.

Italian companies will deliver generators to Ukraine in the coming weeks "to support energy infrastructure and the population," it said.

Meloni also expressed her backing for current diplomatic efforts and the US’s commitment to chart a course toward a "just and lasting peace."

Ukraine's readiness to participate in negotiations in good faith remains "instrumental to this process," the statement said, while expressing hope that Moscow would demonstrate "similar openness."

Zelenskyy said on the US social media company X’s platform that he had "a very substantive conversation" with Meloni, expressing gratitude for her focus on diplomatic initiatives and assistance for power infrastructure.

"There is still work to be done together to ensure that Russia genuinely commits to ending the war," he said. "Italy clearly supports the need for real security and for preventing any renewed outbreaks of war."

French President Emmanuel Macron said Saturday that he will travel to London for high-level talks with Zelenskyy, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz to assess the situation in Ukraine and advance the negotiations under US mediation.