«I understand Yulia Navalny, but the doctors and judges will clarify Alexei’s death. Not us.” These few words are enough for Matteo Salvini to end up in the storm. And for people to talk again about the relations between the League and United Russia, Vladimir Putin’s party. Also thanks to a book: his former spokesperson Gianluca Savoini, who, once the Metropol investigation was closed, published his memoirs with an evocative title and an even more explicit subtitle: “From Pontida to Metropol. The long war of the strong international powers against the League“. But in the current political debate there is more talk about the pact stipulated with United Russia in 2017. And which according to some in the Northern League would never have come into force. Although there are those who say that it has even been renovated.
The agreement
“There was a meeting in which we signed a memorandum of values, but the agreements are something else,” said League undersecretary Andrea Crippa yesterday, trying to downplay its importance. The pact between the League and United Russia began to be discussed on Monday, during the torchlight vigil at the Capitol for Navalny. Massimiliano Romeo, leader of the Northern League group in the Senate, had stated, while waiting for the protests in the streets, that the agreement had expired. The pact was signed on March 6, 2017 between League Secretary Salvini and United Russia Undersecretary of International Relations Zhelezniak. And point 8 instead provided for a tacit renewal for another five years: «This agreement comes into force after the signature of the authorized representatives of the Parties and is valid for five years. The agreement is automatically extended for subsequent periods of five years, unless one of the Parties notifies the other Party no later than six months before the expiration of the agreement of its intention to terminate it.”
The renewal
Il Foglio wrote in recent days that the pact was never dissolved. Also because this required notification from one of the two parties to the other. For this reason Carlo Calenda yesterday during Door to door went on the attack: «Go see on social networks the fanfare with which Salvini signed that agreement. He shows a letter in which they canceled it, if they did. What do we need? It’s not that the agreement never existed, there is the text and also the automatic renewal date. Crippa lies about this. The League said that they will sue me, that they will do it.” The Action leader also threatened with an individual motion of censure against the deputy prime minister and Minister of Infrastructure and Transport: “Salvini is in the government, he knows all the security information and does not can be a formal ally of Putin, who puts Europe before fire and sword.”
Gianluca Savoini
And then there is Savoini. He collected the dismissal for the case of alleged Russian funds to the League. It broke out after the publication of the recording from the Metropol hotel in Moscow. But Salvini’s former spokesperson vindicates them in his book. And he is touring the North to present the volume, also with Fratelli d’Italia: The impression He says that the last presentation took place in Alessandria and was organized by Fabrizio Priano, director of the Regional School of Political Training of Giorgia Meloni’s party. While on the Telegram channel “Italia Unita” the book is presented as recommended reading. Even Tg1 called it the right book to shed “clarity on the relations between the League and Russia.” Meanwhile the Captain remains silent. After yesterday’s statements on Rtl 102.5, he preferred to be defended by his team. And to ignore the pact. It will last?