Italy removes EU Flags over Coronavirus response

More and more Italians are becoming disillusioned with the European Union, feeling that there has been a complete lack of support from the bloc in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, The Daily Sabah reports.

Videos on social media have circulated showing the people of the Mediterranean country removing the EU flag and replacing it with the Russian or Chinese flag. This is being done because Russia and China have delivered medical supplies to Italy whilst the EU has been criticised for its reaction as thousands of Italians died from the coronavirus. Even the New York Times has criticised Germany, a key player in the EU project, for not doing enough to help other countries.

Last month, Germany blocked much-needed shipments of medical supplies headed for Switzerland and Austria, as Voice of Europe reported.

https://twitter.com/V_of_Europe/status/1244657948300845057

Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz slammed the move, saying: “It should not happen that we have to fight alone for two weeks to ensure that trucks with protective masks we have already paid for and urgently need get stuck on the German border.”

A member of the Chamber of Deputies, Fabio Rampeli, replaced the EU flag with Italy’s national flag in the parliament. Even the Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, a leftist, has warned that EU leaders could be making “tragic mistakes,” stressing that the country is “suffering a lot” and “cannot afford to procrastinate.”

pic.twitter.com/q6kTukzZs6

— Fabio Rampelli (@fabiorampelli) March 30, 2020

https://twitter.com/BlueStateSOS/status/1244744926786498560

https://twitter.com/ISCResearch/status/1245816293145694208

The people in #Italy are fed up with the EU. They are burning the EU flag. The end of the EU is close now.
"We save ourselves"#CiSalviamoDaSolipic.twitter.com/8csQDcr6Hs

— Kees71 (@Kees71234) March 28, 2020

As Voice of Europe previously reported, the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, described the coronavirus pandemic as “a turning point” for the EU. This crisis and the politicians’ response could make or break the European Union.

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