The tough international sanctions imposed on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine and the military and humanitarian aid that nations have supplied have prevented its annexation, according to Italy's defence minister Lorenzo Guerini.
"If we hadn't had support for Ukraine, today we would be seeing an annexation against the will of a sovereign state by other state," Guerini told an anti-mafia event in Naples on Wednesday.
Guerini also praised the "extraordinary" resistance shown by Ukraine to Russia's two-month-old invasion of their country.
"The resistance of Ukraine's armed forces and people has been extraordinary and is still is. We will continue to help Ukraine," he underlined.
"I think it will be possible to reach a true and fair negotiated solution. And that is also due to the Ukrainian resistance," Guerini stated.
