Italian Defense Minister Calls for Russia-US Thaw, Joint Anti-Terror Front

ROME (Sputnik) — Rome calls on both Moscow and Washington to overcome difficulties in relations and supports establishment of a common anti-terrorism front with Russia, Italian Defense Minister Roberta Pinotti said on Thursday.

"Recently, there has been tensions [between Moscow and Washington] on the issues related to information technologies, and due to different views on the conflict in Syria, I think that new rapprochement is needed in order to strengthen the joint front to counter the enemy, which is terrorism," Pinotti told Il Mattino newspaper.

Pinotti also stressed the importance of restoring dialogue between Russia and NATO, and said that Italy, on its part, supported the corresponding initiatives.

In July, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said at the summit in Warsaw that the Alliance would strengthen its military presence in Eastern Europe on a rotational basis with four battalions in Poland and in the Baltic nations.

Italy, also a NATO member, would contribute to the mission in a "symbolic" way, sending some 150 servicemen, Pinotti said.

US-Russian relations began deteriorating in 2014 in the wake of a coup in Ukraine, followed by Kiev's military operation against independence supporters in the country's southeast, and Crimea’s reunification with Russia. The United States, the European Union and their allies imposed sanctions on Moscow on the pretext of alleged involvement in Ukraine’s affairs — an accusation Russian government has repeatedly denied.

Since 2014, NATO has been building up its military presence in Europe, particularly in eastern European countries bordering Russia, using Moscow's alleged interference in Ukraine as a pretext, as well. As part of the cooling in relations, the NATO-Russia Council, created in 2002 suspended all practical civilian and military cooperation with Moscow.