"What we have to do is seek peace, get the two of them to stop shooting and start talking."
Prime Minister Mario Draghi punctuated it in a speech held in front of an audience of children at the Dante Alighieri school in Sommacampagna , in the province of Verona.
The prime minister spoke to the little ones first of all about the war in Ukraine : "I said to Putin 'I'm calling you to talk about peace', and he told me ' it's not the time '. 'I'm calling you because I would like a ceasefire' , 'this is not the time.' 'Maybe you two can solve the problems, why don't you talk to each other?', 'This is not the time.' I had better luck in Washington talking to President Biden; only from him Putin wants to hear a word and I told him to call. The suggestion was more fortunate because their ministers heard. "
" Those who attack are always wrong - he added -. There is a difference between those who are attacked and those who attack, you have to keep this in mind. Like when one is big on the street and slaps a small one". "What happened is that the little one is now older and 'shelters' from being slapped, first of all because he was helped by his friends, but also because he fights and defends himself for a reason, freedom". “We must think of Russian citizens - he said - and think of them as citizens of the world, we must consider them as we do. Because they are not the enemies, and this is trying to talk about peace ".
THE PANDEMIC - Speaking of the Covid pandemic, he said he hoped "that next year there will be no more need for masks and that the pandemic will not return ".
" I know how much you have suffered because at your age the most important thing is being together - he stressed -. Teachers help you to be aware, together with your parents, but also your friends. Being together helps to understand who you are, with love, with goodness, with joy. You must have fun ".
THE "IDOLS" OF THE PREMIER - Finally a more personal message: "In the classroom they asked me who my idol is. I more and more often think if I owe someone something, and three groups come to me: parents, teachers and my wife".
" My parents - explained Draghi, remembering the father he lost when he was 15 and his mother when he was 19 - helped me not so much from the material side but from the spiritual, psychological and formative point of view. work, part of our existence, respect for the rules, but also a conscience, knowing who you are, what you do, come from my parents. Then I had extraordinary teachers at school , university and even later in studies in America and Italy. How many good teachers there are people ignore, but they are many and very good and you have them in front of you, they are those people who not only sacrifice themselves; they enjoy being with you and give you the first messages of life, they help you find self-awareness. And much of it does it with a smile. " Finally, " the third most important person of the last 40-50 years is my wife . Every now and then I am reminded of the amount of nonsense I would have done without her. The ability to understand the psychological moment I was going through, and the family that is is formed. It is a beautiful story that rests on her. "
(Unioneonline / D)