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Italy halts automatic renewal of Israel defense pact

Prime Minister Meloni says the move is due to the current situation in the Middle East.

JNS Staff
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni addresses the lower house of the Italian Parliament in Rome, Italy, April 9, 2026. Photo by Antonio Masiello/Getty Images.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni addresses the lower house of the Italian Parliament in Rome, Italy, April 9, 2026. Photo by Antonio Masiello/Getty Images.
Photo by Antonio Masiello/Getty Images.
(April 14, 2026 / JNS)

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Tuesday that her government has decided to suspend the automatic renewal of a defense agreement with Israel due to the current situation in the Middle East, according to Italy’s ANSA news agency.

Meloni told reporters during a visit to the Vinitaly wine fair in Verona that Rome was halting renewal of a memorandum setting the framework for defense cooperation, including the exchange of military materiel and technological research for the armed forces. The agreement initially came into force on April 13, 2016 with renewals every five years.

Defense Minister Guido Crosetto informed his Israeli counterpart, Israel Katz, of the decision in a letter, sources told the news agency.

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