Italy Not to Back NATO's Military Engagement in Ukraine War

Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said that Italy will not support the military engagement of NATO in the conflict in Ukraine because this will lead to a world war.

"We will not support the military engagement of NATO in the conflict in Ukraine because this will lead to a world war. We are already in the world war but not from the military point of view," the minister said, cited by the ANSA news agency.

Although the United States and NATO member states have refused to send troops or participate directly in the war since the beginning of the crisis in Ukraine, and have opposed Kyiv's request for a no-fly zone over Ukraine, they have imposed tough sanctions on Moscow, which Russia calls an economic war. Russia warns that these sanctions will deal a serious blow to the entire world economy.

It is worth mentioning that Ukraine's deputy prime minister said that a new prisoner exchange took place on Saturday, according to Anadolu Agency.

In a Telegram message, Iryna Vereshchuk stated the third prisoner swap between the two countries since Russia launched a war on Ukraine on February 24, took place on Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's orders.

Russia has released 26 Ukrainians, including 12 troops and 14 civilians, according to Vereshchuk.

According to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the civilian death toll in the Russia-Ukraine conflict has risen to 1,766 people, with 2,383 injured.

According to the UN refugee agency, the number of Ukrainians who have fled the nation since the war began has surpassed 4.4 million.