(ANSA) - ROME, MAY 13 - Italy strongly backs Finland and Sweden's bid to join NATO after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said Friday.
"We are very happy to welcome them into the Alliance, an Alliance that has guaranteed peace for decades," he said on the sidelines of a G7 meeting in Germany.
In other remarks, Di Maio said "we are risking a world war over bread" sparked by the Ukraine war and announced an Italian initiative with the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to address the food crisis in the Mediterranean.
He also said that talks were needed with the "most significant international actors" to further a peace process for Ukraine.
(ANSA).