The Italian government is hoping for
success in talks with India's new government in the case of two
marines held in India for more than two years in the killing of
two fishermen, Defence Minister Roberta Pinotti said Tuesday.
Pinotti, speaking on the sidelines of a conference of NATO
defence ministers, said that if talks do not succeed,
international arbitration may be the only solution.
One day earlier, the two marines Massimiliano Latorre and
Salvatore Girone sent a Republic Day video message back to Italy
from New Delhi.
Latorre said that all they can do is "suffer with dignity"
as they wait for a resolution to the case against them involving
their actions while on an anti-piracy patrol.
In response Nicola Latorre, who heads the Senate defence
committee, said talks should soon begin with India's newly
elected centre-right government of Narendra Modi.
That could be possible, said Pinotti.
"(Otherwise) we will continue on the road of arbitration,"
she said.
Pinotti also quipped that because she is from Naples, she
is by nature "a bit superstitious" and therefore would not make
predictions about the outcome of the marines case.
Last month the Italian government announced it was opening
a "new phase" in the saga, replacing its special envoy on the
case and sending its ambassador back to New Delhi to help steer
the case towards arbitration by an international organization
such as the UN.
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