"The only real political choice is to stop sending any weapons and deprive Draghi of confidence. Everything else is empty talk and election propaganda, because all parties voted for a blank cheque to arm Ukraine until December 2022," Petrocelli said on Twitter.
Petrocelli, an acting member of the Italian senate from the Five Star Movement (M5S), has previously lashed against Italy's stance on the Ukrainian crisis. He went so far as to urge other members of M5S to leave "the interventionist government that wants to turn Italy into a cobelligerent country." The official repeatedly stressed that pumping up Ukraine with weapons prolongs the hostilities and that most Italians do not wish to see their country dragged in a conflict.
On April 25, a national Italian holiday celebrating the victory over Nazi Germany and allied Italian Social Republic, Petrocelli published a controversial tweet wishing everyone a "good Liberation Day." He capitalized letter Z, associated with Russia's military operation in Ukraine, in the word "liberazione."
The M5S leadership initiated a procedure for his expulsion from the party, with most members of the senate's foreign affairs committee resigning or boycotting its work, but Petrocelli is still in office.
In March, the Italian parliament passed a bill designed to provide assistance to Ukraine, including weapons. Later, M5S leader Giuseppe Conte said that the party objects to supplying military aid to Ukraine, as it is inconsistent with the right to self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter. He later corrected himself saying that the party is only against lethal weapons deliveries.