Matteo Renzi he must clarify his relationship with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed Bin Salman and terminate collaboration with the Future Investment Initiative foundation. TO rekindle the controversy the publication by the American administration of the CIA report with the evidence of involvement of the Saudi prince in the murder of the Washington Post reporter Jamal Khashoggthe. “Matteo Renzi said that after the crisis he would clarify his relations with Saudi Arabia and the ‘great crown prince’. He hasn’t said anything yet, but he has thought about it. Joe Biden. Clarifying now is not just a matter of opportunity, but of national interest “, then wrote the former minister of the South and leader of the Democratic Party. Peppe Provenzano.
The Democratic Party: “Renzi explain your relations with Saudi Arabia”
A request for clarification shared with the party comrade and vice-president of the dem deputies, Michele Bordo. “Renzi tell us even if he is still convinced that a new Renaissance is underway in Saudi Arabia and that the prince is even its interpreter. From what emerges in these hours I do not think so. We will verify if it is appropriate to hire a parliamentary initiative: we must clarify this matter. It is a matter of national security and it is useful for a senator of the Republic, who played an important role in the birth of this government, to really clarify his relations “. And the dem Gianni Cuperlo he adds on Facebook: “Renzi had announced that, once the government crisis was closed, he would offer the reasons for his initiative. It is appropriate that he do so. If possible soon”.
The attack by M5S and the Italian Left
Even the Five Stars movement presses the former prime minister. Gianluca Ferrara, leader of the Senate foreign commission, recalls the murder of Khashoggi: “Stuff worthy of the darkest Middle Ages, other than the Renaissance. While he was going to Saudi Arabia to sing the praises of a murderous regime, the government of Giuseppe Conte and the Farnesina led by Luigi Di Maio they blocked all arms sales to that same regime. Including the bombs used in Yemen that Renzi had decided to sell to Saudi Arabia in 2016 “.
Even harsh criticism of Nicola Fratoianni, Undersecretary of the Italian Left: “Renzi had promised to answer on his relations with that regime after the end of the government crisis, that moment has come. Now clarify for transparency and for the duty of honesty towards Italian citizens”.
Also because the foundation of the Saudi prince plays a fundamental role in the life of his country. The Future Investment initiative, Renzi also sits on the board, is the heart of Mohammed bin Salman’s power, the showcase he built for the world. Created for five years, Davos in the desert (as it is called) aimed in this period to bring the most important players in world finance and economy to the kingdom, from Christine Largarde to Masayoshi Son to convince the world of the new Saudi course: only the loyal ones have a seat on the Board or characters whose international prestige serves to elevate and legitimize the profile of the prince.
It is managed by the PIF, the sovereign investment fund which is the longa manus of the prince in the world of finance and international business and which controls a large part of the Saudi economy. Here MBS made some of its most important international announcements, from the fight against extreme Islam to the investment of billions of dollars in Neom, the so-called city of the future. There is no other platform that the prince has used in the same way to launch his image as a reformer devoted to modernity and a different future for his country: it is no coincidence that this is where the role of pariah was evident that the prince himself earned in the international community after the Khashoggi murder. In 2018, most of the guests deserted the event right after the journalist’s murder.
Amnesty International protest
Meanwhile, the Greens are also asking Renzi to clarify. Amnesty International’s point of view is different. “It is certainly inappropriate to be invited to international forums that are a direct emanation of the Saudi monarchy and to remain silent on the system of human rights violations,” said spokesman Riccardo Noury. But he adds: it should be understood whether “on a scale of gravity” the behavior of “Italian governments that have had official political relations with Saudi Arabia” is even more censurable, sent weapons until 2019 a a country at war with Yemen, participated in the virtual G20 “or the organization of football matches such as the Italian Super Cup. In Italy, concludes the spokesperson for Amnesty,” there was a competition to see who coaxed Saudi Arabia the most , forgetting the bloggers whipped in the streets, the human rights activists in prison, the defenders for women’s rights and the journalists under attack “.
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