Crans Montana, Meloni sees Parmelin. President of Switzerland: 'Stop sending bills to wounded'

The Prime Minister had talks with the President of the Swiss Confederation, Guy Parmelin, on the sidelines of the European Political Community summit in Yerevan. During the discussion, Palazzo Chigi reported, Meloni took up President Parmelin's "political commitment" to ensure that the families of the Italian children affected by the Crans Montana tragedy "will not be required to pay for hospital treatment provided in Switzerland".

At close quarters, Parmelin announced that thepeople injured in the fire in Crans-Montana and their families, "regardless of their place of residence, will not have to pay anything for medical treatment in Swiss hospitals immediately after the disaster. These costs,' he added, 'will be covered by the victim aid, insofar as they are not covered by insurance. In order to avoid any misunderstandings, Switzerland will no longer send copies of the bills to the families of the victims'.

Never as this time has the centrality of the international agenda coincided with geography, as Armenia and Azerbaijan are both less than a thousand kilometres away from crisis scenarios, on one side Ukraine, on the other Iran. And these issues and their repercussions on international relations and the economy were discussed in the work of the European Political Community, which brings together the leaders of 47 European nations, confirming itself as a place for informal dialogue between Heads of State and Government. For the EU institutions, European Council President Costa and Presidents Metsola and von der Leyen attended. The Secretaries-General of NATO Rutte, Council of Europe Berset and OSCE Sinirlioglu will also participate.

On the sidelines of the Summit, the second meeting of the European Coalition Against Drugs (ECAD), co-chaired with French President Macron, took place with the presentation of the 2026 initiatives. The Coalition aims to provide operational responses to the challenges related to drug trafficking, in liaison with international and European organisations, strengthening cooperation between Member States and non-EU countries. The action is divided into three pillars: combating transnational trafficking; combating illicit financial flows, money laundering and corruption according to the 'follow the money' approach; and strengthening prevention and recovery policies.

The official visit by Prime Minister Meloni to Azerbaijan, at the invitation of President Aliyev, is part of the strategy that the Italian government is pursuing to strengthen Italy's energy security and protect Italian families and businesses from external shocks, particularly in the current scenario marked by the Iranian crisis and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, Italian sources close to the dossier explain. A strategy that in recent weeks has taken President Meloni first to North Africa and then to the Gulf countries.

Meloni with Aliyev will 'deepen' the ways to consolidate bilateral relations by working on the 'quality' of the partnership along the entire energy chain, without forgetting the prospects for stabilising the area (precisely the peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia), passing through the progressive strengthening of political and economic relations between Baku and Brussels, to which Italia provides 'firm support'.

Italia is confirmed as the first destination market for Azerbaijani exports, with a predominant component in the energy sector, which historically represents the pillar of cooperation between the two nations.

Azerbaijan is the second largest supplier of oil and gas to Italia (17% and 16% of national needs respectively). In an international context marked by a high degree of uncertainty and instability, which affects the resilience of supply chains and the security of energy flows, Meloni and Aliyev will have the opportunity to explore ways to consolidate the relationship that binds Rome and Baku, working on the quality of the partnership along the entire supply chain. In the course of the talks, the main current international issues will also be addressed, starting from the war in Ukraine to the situation in Iran and the related regional dynamics, with a focus on the most recent developments and the possible impacts on the security balance. Finally, the two leaders will be able to take stock of the normalisation process of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia.