Italy's foreign minister has mounted a remarkable defence of his government's controversial decision to permit agents from the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency to enter the country for the forthcoming Winter Olympic Games. Antonio Tajani addressed the growing political storm by stating emphatically, "It's not like the SS are coming."
Political Firestorm Over Security Presence
The announcement that ICE personnel would be part of the official US delegation to the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics has ignited a fierce backlash across the Italian political spectrum. Thousands of citizens have reportedly signed petitions demanding the government block the agents' entry, creating a significant diplomatic and domestic challenge for Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's administration.
Minister's Controversial Comparison
Foreign Minister Tajani sought to downplay concerns during a Tuesday address, insisting the agents attending would not be "those that are on the street in Minneapolis." This reference follows the fatal shooting of two individuals by ICE officers in that American city earlier this month, incidents that have provoked substantial public outcry and scrutiny of the agency's tactics.
"I have been harder than anyone else in Italy on [the ICE] raids," Mr. Tajani declared while confronting the criticism. "But it's not like the SS are coming. The problem isn't that those with machine guns and their faces covered are coming. They're officials from a specific unit. They're coming because it's the unit responsible for counter-terrorism," he explained in an interview with L'Espresso magazine.
Opposition Parties Demand Action
The comparison to the Schutzstaffel, the notorious paramilitary organisation of Nazi Germany, has done little to placate opposition figures. Multiple political parties are now urgently calling for the Italian government to take a firm stance against the Trump administration and prohibit the agents from entering the country.
Local Officials Voice Strong Objections
Giuseppe Sala, the Mayor of Milan which is hosting several Olympic events, stated unequivocally that ICE agents are "not welcome" at the Games scheduled to run from 6 February until 15 March. "This is a militia that kills," he told Italian radio station RTL 102.5. "It is clear that they are not welcome in Milan. There's no doubt about it. Can't we just say no to Trump for once?"
Angelo Bonelli, spokesperson for the Greens and Left Alliance, offered a stark comparison: "The Gestapo conducted raids with their faces uncovered, while ICE conducts them with their faces covered. Unfortunately, this is the only real difference."
Mounting Concerns Over Safety and Values
Italian officials have expressed profound concerns about potential safety risks following the deaths of intensive care nurse Alex Pretti and writer Renee Good in Minneapolis. In both incidents, ICE officials claimed agents were acting in self-defence, though these accounts have been disputed and have fuelled public anger.
Political Leaders Condemn the Decision
Giuseppe Conte, president of the populist Five Star Movement, declared: "After street violence and killings in the USA, we now learn from their spokesperson that ICE agents will come to Italy ... We cannot allow this."
Marco Furfaro, a Democratic Party MP, told La Repubblica newspaper: "ICE is not welcome in Italy in any form. The government should have said only this: our country is strongly opposed to the presence, even minimal or symbolic, of a militia so incompatible with our constitution and our values at the Olympic Games."
Conflicting Statements and Clarifications
Attilio Fontana, the governor of the Lombardy region where Milan is located, initially suggested ICE would only be present as "bodyguards" for Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. However, he later backtracked, stating he did not know anything about the matter and had not intended to confirm their presence.
Official Justifications and Investigations
ICE has confirmed it will send its Homeland Security Investigations branch alongside the diplomatic security service to protect top officials. The agency stated this unit would be present "to vet and mitigate risks from transnational criminal organisations." According to the ICE website, the HSI branch investigates global threats into, out of and through the United States.
Tricia McLaughlin, the Assistant Homeland Security Secretary, insisted that "obviously, ICE does not conduct immigration enforcement operations in foreign countries," attempting to assuage international concerns about jurisdictional overreach.
Broader Diplomatic Tensions
The controversy has been further inflamed by reports that two journalists with Italian television broadcaster RAI were threatened by ICE agents in Minneapolis. The reporters were accompanying a volunteer monitoring operations when armed men approached their vehicle, demanding they roll down windows and warning: "If you keep following us from this point on ... we will break your window and we will pull you out of the vehicle."
Peppe Provenzano of the centre-left Democratic party described the incident as journalists being "threatened by Trump's political police," and called on the Meloni government to "formally protest and distance itself once and for all."
The Trump administration has faced mounting criticism following these events, with The Atlantic reporting that President Trump sacked Gregory Bovino, the border patrol chief leading immigration raids across the country, after the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.
As the Winter Olympics approach, the Italian government finds itself navigating increasingly turbulent diplomatic waters, balancing security arrangements with domestic political pressure and international scrutiny of its relationship with the United States administration.
