Nicaragua severs Italy ties over harboured PM's assassin
Nicaragua has broken off diplomatic relations with Italy after Rome criticised Managua for sheltering a convicted killer, further isolating the Central American nation from an already hostile European Union.
Nicaragua announced on Thursday it was severing all diplomatic relations with Italy. The sudden rupture follows sharp criticism from Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, who denounced the Nicaraguan government for continuing to shelter Alessio Casimirri, a man convicted of assassinating former Italian prime minister Aldo Moro in 1978.
Casimirri, now 74, arrived in Nicaragua in 1983 and obtained citizenship five years later. He was sentenced in absentia in Italy to six life terms in prison for his role in the kidnapping and killing of Moro. In 2004, Nicaragua's Supreme Court formally refused an Italian extradition request.
Speaking at a conference in Madrid on Wednesday, Tajani signalled a tougher Italian stance. "We have absolutely nothing in common with the positions of extremist governments such as that of Nicaragua," Italian media quoted him as saying. The Nicaraguan foreign ministry quickly fired back, labelling the comments "unjustified, aggressive and irresponsible."
"We are breaking off all diplomatic relations with the government of Italy," the ministry stated in an official release. Rome remained defiant, with the Italian Foreign Ministry stating it would "continue to demand that Casimirri answer before Italian justice for the crimes for which he has been convicted."
Diplomatic isolation deepens
For European policymakers, the severance of ties removes a formal channel of communication with an increasingly authoritarian regime. Managua is already heavily isolated, operating under strict sanctions from both the United States and the European Union. Those punitive measures were implemented following a severe political crackdown that forced thousands of Nicaraguans into exile.
The government has jailed hundreds of opponents, and some Nicaraguans have been stripped of their citizenship. While Italy's immediate grievance centres on a decades-old murder case, Tajani’s comments reflect a broader European alignment against Managua. Without an embassy or diplomatic staff on the ground, Italy and its EU partners lose a vital window into a volatile state.
