Ukrainian War, Toson (Confindustria): “Disaster for Italian companies”

Ukraine at the moment “is experiencing a stalemate. The Russian military fronts have intensified their activities and then slowed down. They thought they could siege some cities in a much shorter time and with less forces”. But things seem to have gone differently. Now the ongoing negotiations between the Russians and the Ukrainians “will be very long, because there are very clear positions on both sides. The situation is still very tragic”. This is said by Marco Toson, president of Confindustria Ukraine and honorary consul in the country for the regions of Veneto, Trentino Alto Adige and Friuli Venezia Giulia, contacted by Adnkronos. Confindustria Ukraine since last week has activated an emergency office for companies present in the country. “The situation is of maximum emergency and maximum disaster”, continues the president of Confindustria Ukraine. There are over one hundred Italian companies in Ukraine with production, processing or operational bases. For the Italian companies present in Ukraine and Russia “the worst scenario is that of a protracted conflict”, capable of paralyzing all activities for months. But already in a few days of conflict, the Italian companies present in the country have suffered enormous damage. For Toson, “calculating the general damage is difficult now”, but the blocking of activities, exports and orders is causing “incredible” impacts. The Confindustria association is now trying to trace the problems of businesses in the country and “will bring a joint document to Rome that will quantify the shortfall of the companies we are asking for support from the Italian government”. The economic consequences of the conflict will affect not only companies in Ukraine and Russia, but also Italian companies that have commercial links with the two countries. “We will have significant problems such as Veneto or other regions. It will be necessary to understand what will compromise the evolution of the general chessboard”, underlines the president of Confindustria Ukraine. So much so that Unindustria Reggio Emilia, first among the Confindustria associations, has activated a task force for the protection of business in the Russian-Ukrainian area. “The Reggio business fabric is suffering”, explains Giorgia Iasoni, vice president of Unindustria Reggio Emilia, delegate for internationalization. “In 2021, exports to Ukraine and Russia had exceeded 230 million euros. Russia is the ninth trading partner for Reggio Emilia companies and Ukraine the 23rd. In light of these dramatic events such as Unindustria Reggio Emilia, we have decided to intervene to protect our business with a task force for the Russian-Ukrainian area to divulge as much as possible with our associates to support them “.