The information was disclosed Wednesday on its digital site by the Corriere della Sera newspaper, and notes that the country’s Foreign Ministry communicated to Beijing its refusal to renew by the March 22, 2024 deadline the agreement signed in 2019.

In the official note to the Chinese embassy to make known the abandonment of that pact, the desire of the current Italian government to “develop and strengthen bilateral collaboration” between the two countries is expressed, the source adds.

This is an expected decision after previous statements against the participation in this project made in recent months by high-ranking Italian officials, including the Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, as well as the heads of Foreign Affairs and Defense, Antonio Tajani and Guido Crosetto, respectively.

In fact, according to media reports, the issue was raised at a meeting between Meloni and U.S. President Joe Biden during the Italian leader’s visit to Washington at the end of July, during which the U.S. president questioned Rome’s participation in the Beijing initiative.

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