Salvini said he had a high opinion of the Russian president “free of charge” and dismissed the billionaire philanthropist and liberal open-society advocate as a “speculator who 20 years ago caused one of the biggest Italian economic disasters,” when the lira was forced out of the European exchange rate mechanism (ERM) along with the pound.
“I have already sued people who said Russia was paying me,” said deputy premier and Interior Minister Salvini, adding that “I’ve never had a lira from Russia, or a matrioska, or a fur hat.” “There is a relationship of esteem with Putin, I believe he has done a lot for his people and with interventions against Islamist terrorism like the intervention in Syria: and I say that gratis, because I think so. Source Ansa news
Luxembourg will have to recover about €120 million in unpaid tax from French energy giant Engie, after the European Commission found the Grand Duchy guilty of breaching strict state aid rules. Source: Euractiv
France and Germany have agreed to set up a common budget for the eurozone, Chancellor Angela Merkel said Tuesday, announcing a key reform proposal to bolster the bloc. Source: France24
An Italian coastguard ship carrying more than 500 migrants, including dozens rescued by the US Navy off Libya last week, arrived on Tuesday night at a port in Sicily, days after the new hard-right interior minister banned NGO rescue ships from docking in Italy. Source: The Local
