Burak Bir
23 May 2026•Update: 23 May 2026
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and her Irish counterpart, Micheal Martin, agreed Friday on the importance of ensuring humanitarian assistance in Gaza, as well as the condemnation of settler violence and Israeli settlement activities.
"We also agree on some fixed positions on the situation in Gaza and West Bank, without prejudicing Israel's right to security," Meloni said at a joint news conference following talks with Martin in Rome.
She noted that the two-state solution is the "only possible just and lasting peace."
Martin stressed the need to see an urgent end to the conflicts in the Middle East, Iran, Lebanon and between Israel and Palestine.
"That will only emerge with a true commitment to diplomacy, to dialogue, to human rights and international law," he noted.
The Irish premier underlined that there needs to be an end to the violence in the occupied West Bank and to settlements that are occurring, adding that there is also a need to open up a genuine pathway to dialogue.
"We do need much, much higher volumes of humanitarian aid to be allowed into Gaza," he added.
Brussels must also reflect responsibly
Touching on energy, Meloni said it is an "absolute priority" for Italy, noting that the Iranian crisis is having "serious consequences" for families and businesses and affecting the competitiveness of the country's production systems.
"We are faced with exceptional circumstances beyond the control of individual member states which, in our view, require responses and justify extending the flexibility already granted for security and defense spending to include the investments needed to address the energy crisis," she noted.
She went on to say that at a time when resources are scarce, Brussels "must also reflect responsibly on the operating costs of its own administrative machinery."
"I said to the EU Council, at our last meeting, that spending €800 million ($928 million) to renovate the headquarters of the Council of the European Union doesn't seem to me to be a good sign, and so perhaps some signals on this front would be helpful," she added.
