The prank that two Russian comedians made to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is not without consequences. Meloni’s diplomatic advisor, Francesco Talo, has resigned, the head of government said today at a press conference. He drew conclusions from the fact that his office linked the Prime Minister to the comedians over the phone.
“Treated carelessly”
Meloni told a news conference that the incident highlighted the “superficiality” of his diplomatic office. “The call was handled carelessly,” said the head of government. She emphasized that she became suspicious after the call and reported it to her office, but no action was taken.
“This matter was not handled well, we are all sorry, Ambassador Talo took responsibility for it,” said Meloni. The Prime Minister stressed that she regretted Talos’ dismissal because he had done well in his first year in office.
She has made more than 80 international calls so far. During her first term, no other prime minister maintained as many diplomatic contacts as she did, Meloni said.
Duo has already tricked the mayor of Vienna, Ludwig
The Italian head of government was the victim of a caller claiming to be Azali Assoumani, president of the African Union (AU) and also head of state of the Comoros, as her office in Rome recently confirmed.
In reality, the Russian duo Wowan and Lexus, who deceived Vienna Mayor Michael Ludwig (SPÖ) the previous year, were behind it. They introduced themselves to him and other European city leaders such as Kiev Mayor Vitaly Klitschko.