Ukraine, the League does not vote in favor of the loan of 35 billion

"No to blank checks for weapons", the patriots' group splits

by Alessio Pisanò

BRUSSELS – The League is the only Italian political delegation not to have voted in favor of the 35 billion euro loan to Ukraine, approved today by a large majority in the plenary session of the European Parliament. Matteo Salvini’s party in fact abstained, specifying in a note that “the League, in all places and at all levels, in government as well as in Europe, has always supported Ukraine and its sacrosanct right to defend itself from the aggressor. At the same time, we have expressed on more than one occasion strong doubts towards those in the West who seem to prefer military escalation to diplomacy, fanning the flames and with the concrete risk of a third world war. Support for Kiev cannot be transformed into a blank cheque, without any control and conditionality relating to the purchase of armaments”.
The Eurogroup of Patriots for Europe of which the League is a part was therefore split: even the French of Rassemblement National and the Flemish of Vlaams Belang abstained, while the Austrians of the Fpo voted against. Instead, the Czech MEPs of ANO, the Dutch MEPs of PVV, the Portuguese MEPs of Chega and the Spanish MEPs of Vox voted yes.