Chronicle of a world that no longer exists, twenty years are few to measure the distance between the Maddalena summit on August 30, 2003 aboard the missile cruiser Moskva and the days of fear the world is living through today. The great warship, the pride of the Russian Federation, the cruiser on which world leaders have spoken of peace on several occasions, now lies at the bottom of the Black Sea, torn apart by two Neptune missiles.
On the morning of August 30, 2003, an honor strike by Russian sailors on the Moskva greeted Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who was expected to attend the summit with Vladimir Putin. The missile cruiser entered the bay of Santo Stefano, leading a team of three ships (a destroyer and an auxiliary ship also arrived at La Maddalena). To make room for Russian warships, US Emory Land left the island as a base for US nuclear submarines. The content of the PutinBerlusconi summit is impressive by today’s eyes.
“She is a ship of peace”
The Italian Prime Minister said: “Today’s visit to the cruiser Moskva is the result of the decision to admit the Russian Federation to the NATO Council. Until recently, it would have been unthinkable to see Russian ships moored in Santo Stefano Bay, but also to move American ships to make room for those of the former Soviet Union, which are now participating in joint maneuvers with those of NATO countries.
Putin also spoke a language of peace: “Russia has nothing to fear from a strong European defense policy, on the contrary, we support it and we want it to be clear and transparent.” Putin also brought the huge and useless Beriev 200 firefighting plane as a dowry with, an airplane too big to throw inhibitory liquids into the ravines of the Sardinian hinterland. The Beriev took part in some sorties, but failed to impress the civil defense department and was not purchased.
However, the climate was peaceful. On board the cruiser there was talk of trade agreements, gas, the Balkans, Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan. A day of peace in the archipelago, marred by news that now seems like an omen, the sinking of the Russian submarine K159 in the Barents Sea Putin learned about the tragedy at La Maddalena on the Moscow River. Twenty years have passed, peace is just a memory while Putin thinks about his pride that has landed on the bottom of the sea. And that scares the world
Andrea Busia
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