Premier Mario Draghi told a press
conference after the European Council in Brussels Friday that
"the EU is growing, is it becoming increasingly important, it is
becoming that institution to which all the EU countries look to
as an institution capable of giving them stability and
security".
He went on, after the Council OK'd candidate status for Ukraine
and Moldova: "we decided that the process of enlargement, so
demanding and bureaucratic, will remain demanding but will be
much less bureaucratic. The EU will take on a less severe
dimension".
Draghi also said that "in the euro area, above all due to energy
prices and inflation, the forecasts are for a slowdown in all
countries. We are committed to protecting and bolstering the
Italians' purchasing power".
He went on: "we spoke about energy, of what to do about such
high prices. Italy, for stocks is doing very well and the
reliance on Russian gas, which was 40% last year, today stands
at 25%: the measures which we took are starting to produce
results.
"We must act immediately on energy prices because we are moving
from an inflation which depended substantially on energy to one
which depends on other things. These hikes are spreading and are
becoming increases for other goods".
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