Italy plans to stop arms sales to Saudi Arabia, prime minister says

'We are not in favour of the sale of these weapons and so now it is only a question of formalising this position,' says Giuseppe Conte

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte says he supports an end to Saudi arms sales (AFP/Getty Images)

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has said that his government wants to end arms sales to Saudi Arabia, and intends to formalise the decision.

The move comes after months of controversy around the Gulf state, due to its ongoing involvement in the Yemen conflict and the murder of journalist Jamal Kashoggi.

If the decision goes ahead, Italy would join a growing list of nations choosing to halt arms sales to the Saudis.

“We are not in favour of the sale of these weapons and so now it is only a question of formalising this position and acting accordingly,” Mr Conte told reporters at the prime minister’s traditional end-year news conference.

The minister was responding to a question about the country’s involvement with arms sales to Saudi Arabia, in light of Khashoggi’s murder and the escalating situation in Yemen.

Yemen has been locked in civil war since 2015, with the government backed by a Saudi-led coalition against the Shiite Houthi movement.

According to the United Nations, the conflict has left 14 million people facing starvation, pushing it towards becoming one of the worst famines in living memory.

Denmark, Finland, Germany and Norway have all decided to stop selling weapons to the Saudi regime, and Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau said he wanted to find a way out of his nation’s arms deal.

However, many more nations are still exporting weapons to the Middle Eastern kingdom, including France and the UK.

Pressure have been growing on these nations to end all weapons sales, and this has mounted further after the kingdom was implicated in the murder of Khashoggi.

The Washington Post journalist had been critical of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto leader of the kingdom. He visited the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, where he was killed and reportedly dismembered.

After initially denying any involvement, the Saudis eventually admitted responsibility and said 21 people had been taken into custody over the crime.