Italy's foreign minister Luigi Di Maio has called for a "a more cohesive, ambitious and supportive" European Union, saying the bloc owed this to EU parliament speaker David Sassoli, who died this week.
"In his (Sassoli's) name and his memory, we should continue with the project of a more cohesive and ambitious and supportive Europe that is fit for the upcoming challenges," Di Maio said on Thursday.
"Europe is not just an accident of history, Di Maio said, quoting remarks made by Sassoli in his inauguration speech in 2019.
"I don't know what we can add to such a phrase that is so simple and profound, full of hope and faith in the idea of an integrated Europe," Di Maio added.
Sassoli's death on Tuesday at 65 "leaves an enormous void in European politics", Di Maio said.
The former journalist, centre-left Italian Democrat and convinced European was admitted to hospital in Aviano on 26 December after a “dysfunction of his immune system”. He died there on Tuesday.
In an address posted on social media three days before being hospitalised, Sassoli spoke of his hope for 2022 but criticised the building of walls that “block people who seek shelter”.
