Italy and other western countries must give unwavering support to Ukraine in its almost-three-year-old war with invader Russia for peace to be possible, foreign minister Antonio Tajani said on Friday.
"We defend the principles of freedom and international law that Russia has violated. And we are working for peace," Tajani stated.
"This is also because Ukraine's defeat would kill any hope of peace," Tajani went on.
Tajani was answering a question from a reporter as he arrived at a health service consultation in Milan organised by his conservative Forza Italia party.
Tajani will address the annual global Munich Security Conference this weekend, where Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to plead for more support as the US House of Representatives stalls a multi-billion dollar military aid package for the embattled country.
