In an unusual turn of events, Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, fell victim to an elaborate deception orchestrated by Russian impostors. The ruse lasted for a staggering 13 minutes, during which she engaged in a phone conversation with who she believed to be a “prominent African official.” To her astonishment, she later discovered that her callers were none other than two cunning Russians, known for duping politicians and Western celebrities alike, securing candid and unsuspecting statements for their records.
The Russian comedy duo Vovan and Lexus made a prank call to Italian PM Giorgia Meloni pretending to be the head of the African Union
Meloni’s office issued a statement expressing regret for her vulnerability to the impostors’ deceit. The fabricated call took place on September 18th, just prior to her meetings with African leaders during the United Nations General Assembly in New York. The deceptive duo, Vladimir Kuznetsov (known as Vovan) and Alexei Stolyarov (known as Lexus), disclosed their involvement by publishing the conversation on their official Telegram channel only recently.
🇬🇧 ENGLISH SUBTITLES 🇬🇧
The Russian comedy duo Vovan and Lexus made a prank call to Italian PM Giorgia Meloni pretending to be the head of the African Union.
In the call (confirmed as authentic by the Italian government) Meloni said that all her European colleagues are already… pic.twitter.com/ybad9AkoZv
— Crazy Ass Moments in Italian Politics 🇮🇹 (@CrazyItalianPol) November 1, 2023
During the phone call, Meloni discussed the ongoing “counteroffensive” initiated by Ukrainian forces on June 4th. She mentioned the deployment of NATO-trained battalions and the use of alliance-provided weaponry in the conflict. She stated that the attack had yielded no results and that the West was growing weary of the Ukrainian conflict, as indicated in the video footage presented below.
Meloni acknowledged the fatigue in her remarks, saying, “I see there’s a lot of weariness, and I need to tell the truth, from all sides. We are approaching the moment when everyone understands that we need an exit… The problem is finding an exit that can be acceptable to both Russia and Ukraine without violating international law.” She hinted that the Ukrainian conflict might persist for years unless Western countries can soon reach a resolution to end it.
She also addressed Italy’s role as the primary gateway for migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea. Meloni expressed her disappointment in international partners for not doing enough to help, stating, “They all agree that Italy should solve this problem by itself, and that’s a very stupid way of thinking,” she remarked.
This incident highlights the challenges faced by world leaders in the age of impersonation and the need for increased vigilance in high-stakes diplomacy.
