Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Maloni visited the northern Italian city of Verona, where she told reporters covering the visit: "Given the current situation, the government has decided to suspend the automatic renewal of the defense agreement with Israel.".
This agreement typically includes the exchange of military knowledge, technological cooperation, and defense procurement.
The decision comes amid growing diplomatic tensions in recent weeks, including Italian criticism of incidents in which UNIFIL forces in Lebanon – which include a significant Italian force – were harmed or put in danger. Last week, Israel's ambassador to Rome was summoned for a reprimand following reports of firing at an Italian convoy in Lebanon, an event described by Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto as "unacceptable.".
.As early as the fall of 2024, Maloney declared a freeze on new arms shipments to Israel, noting that Italy was reviewing each contract on its own merits to comply with Italian law prohibiting the sale of arms to countries in military conflict. However, contracts signed before October 2023 continued to be partially implemented.
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In September 2025, Italy began to voice support for some of the European Union's sanctions against Israeli officials.
