Author Archives: Caterina Milo

The Arrest and Detention of Ilaria Salis in Hungary

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On 13 February 2023, the Italian Embassy in Hungary was informed that Ilaria Salis, an Italian national, had been arrested in Budapest two days earlier. She had been taken into custody on charges of armed group violence for assaulting far-right activists during a demonstration. She was accused of being part of organised groups that allegedly planned to attack people present at the demonstration. The Embassy was informed that Ms. Salis was being held in a Budapest prison and that the prosecution was seeking a prison sentence of 11 years.

In 2024, while expressing concern for non-compliance with fair trial and minimum standards on detention, Italy initially only stressed the need to respect Hungary’s sovereignty and the impartiality of its judiciary.[1] On 29 January 2024, the Minister of Justice, Mr. Carlo Nordio, emphasised that “the Hungarian judiciary is sovereign” and that Italy could only take action through diplomatic channels to improve the conditions of detention.[2] Further statements by both Mr. Nordio and the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Mr. Antonio Tajani, underlined that the principle of judicial sovereignty of a State would prevent interference in the conduct of the trial and Ms. Salis’s detention status.[3]

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The Veto Power at the Security Council: Emerging Trends and Continuity with the Past

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In 2023, Italy repeatedly expressed its position on the veto power of the five permanent members (P5) of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). This position is reflected in the statements concerning the work of the UNSC[1] and in those outlining the reform proposal of the Uniting for Consensus (UfC) group. The views expressed by Italian representatives developed along two lines: a harsh criticism of the veto power because of its contradiction with the principle of sovereign equality, and the need to monitor – but in the short term maintain – the use of this voting mechanism in the light of the necessities of multilateralism.

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The Non-extradition of Italian Terrorists from France, Between Political and Legal Issues

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On 28 March 2023, the French Cour de Cassation upheld the decision of 29 June 2022 whereby the Cour d’appel of Paris had ruled that ten of the former members of the left-wing terrorist organization known as the Red Brigades – who had found refuge in France for almost 40 years – should not be extradited to Italy. The Italian Government, which in January 2020, with the support of the French authorities, had requested the extradition of the former terrorists,[1] condemned the decision of the Cour de Cassation, thus continuing the never-ending debate on the political gradient of extradition.[2]

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On Some International Agreements Concerning Nuclear Weapons in Light of the New Challenges Posed by the Russian Invasion of Ukraine

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The year 2022 was undoubtedly marked by a strong prominence of the debate related to nuclear weapons, driven by a series of institutional events such as the Tenth Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), the plenary United Nations (UN) meeting against nuclear testing and the first World Conference of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).

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The Non-Recognition of the Taliban Government of Afghanistan

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Following the so-called Doha Agreement,[1] in April 2021 the final phase of the withdrawal of the United States (US) Army and all North Atlantic Treaty Organization forces on Afghan territory began. In May 2021, the Taliban launched their offensive, conquering in a rapid succession most capitals of the country’s provinces. The peak of the Taliban military attack occurred on 15 August 2021, the day of the conquest of Kabul. The subsequent escape of the President of Afghanistan, Mr. Ashraf Ghani, to the United Arab Emirates marked the capitulation of the Armed Forces of Afghanistan, the end of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, which had been established in 2004, and the restoration of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan by the Taliban.

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The Scope of the Immunity of United Nations Personnel

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On 15 July 2020, Carmine Mario Paciolla, an Italian citizen working with the United Nations (UN) Verification Mission in Colombia, was found dead in his home in San Vicente del Caguán, in the Department of Caquetá, Colombia. The day after Paciolla’s death, a team of the Special Investigation Unit of the UN Department of Safeguard and Security collected all his personal belongings and cleaned up the apartment where he was living. No official of the General Prosecutor of Colombia or of the Colombian judicial police was present at this time. The staff of the UN Verification Mission was reminded that they were under an obligation to maintain confidentiality.[1] The Italian judicial authorities have, since August 2020, sought the cooperation of the UN to clarify the facts of the case and establish any responsibility.[2]

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International Cooperation in the Fight against Covid-19 and the Efforts for Equal Access to and Distribution of Vaccines

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Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Italy has played a proactive role in international initiatives aimed at countering health threats.[1] The Italian strategy in the fight against the pandemic was pursued through cooperation in different multilateral fora. Firstly, Italy participated in multilateral efforts undertaken within the World Health Organization (WHO), the European Union (EU) and the G20 and supported initiatives to reform global health law through the adoption of a new binding instrument on pandemic preparedness and response. Furthermore, Italy committed to ensuring the success of international procurement mechanisms for vaccines’ supply to low- and middle-income countries and advocated for exemptions to the international patent system to increase vaccines’ production.

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The Report of the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry on the Death of Giulio Regeni

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On 1 December 2021, the Chamber of Deputies adopted the final report of the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (hereinafter, Commission) on the death of Giulio Regeni.[1] The Commission had been established by the same Chamber on 30 April 2019 to, among other things, “gather the elements necessary to clarify all the responsibilities and circumstances that led to the death of Giulio Regeni”.[2]

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The Arrest and Continuous Detention of Egyptian Researcher Patrick Zaki

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On 7 February 2020, Patrick Zaki, an Egyptian researcher, was arbitrarily arrested by the Egyptian authorities at Cairo airport. He was returning home from Italy for a family visit. Since August 2019, he had been on leave from his job at the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) to study for a postgraduate degree at the University of Bologna. Upon his arrival at Cairo airport, Zaki was disappeared for 24 hours.

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