Economic pressure on Russia key for peace, Italy's Prime Minister says

Economic pressure on Russia remains "the most effective weapon" to pressure it to end its conflict with Ukraine, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Tuesday, when asked whether Europe should ease its ban on Moscow's gas imports.

Meloni spoke on the sidelines of a wine fair after the head of energy group EniENI.MI said that the EU restriction should be reconsidered as the bloc grapples with the fallout of the Iran conflict on energy supplies.

Energy worries have mounted in Italy and across Europe after the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway that normally carries about a fifth of global LNG supplies, to most shipping.

"The economic pressure that we have exerted on Russia over these years is the most effective weapon to help build peace, and therefore we must be very careful about how we move forward," Meloni told reporters.

Moscow faces a ban on ​imports of liquefied natural gas on short-term ​contracts from April 25 and on long-term contracts ⁠from January 1, 2027. Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi said it was unclear how to replace 20 billion cubic metres of Russian LNG.

Speaking in the northern Italian city of Verona, Meloni, who is due to meet President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Rome on Wednesday, said she hoped progress towards peace could be made before the ban takes effect.

Her ally, the far-right League party, which has often expressed pro-Russia views, is also urging her to reopen supplies from Moscow.

Party leader Matteo Salvini said on Tuesday he had discussed with Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti an unspecified plan to freeze energy prices at levels seen before the Iran war broke out on February 28, but did not provide details on the potentially costly move.

-Reporting by Angelo Amante and Giuseppe Fonte; Editing by Janane Venkatraman/Reuters