Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Italian Republic has accepted more than 180,000 Ukrainian citizens fleeing the war, Italian Ambassador to Ukraine Pier Francesco Zazzo said in an exclusive interview with the Interfax-Ukraine news agency.

"By the way, since the beginning of the full-scale war, Italy has received more than 180,000 Ukrainian refugees. Also very important is the fact that Italy strongly supports the European integration of Ukraine. Our country plays an important role in this direction and we believe in the enlargement of the European Union. In addition, we are the third largest contributor to the EU budget," the ambassador said.

Asked whether Italy was afraid of an "escalation of war" in Ukraine, Zazzo said that "the Italian government is very committed to helping Ukraine". At the same time, he noted that Italy used to have very strong ties with Russia, so the full support for Ukraine since the outbreak of full-scale war was a "big and pleasant surprise" for the Ukrainians.

"This position was firmly maintained when the government went from Mario Draghi to Giorgi Meloni. She is very supportive of Kiev and has a really strong position," the ambassador added.

The full text of the interview with the Italian ambassador will be published on the website of the Interfax-Ukraine agency.