Western sanctions against Russia do not work and hurt Italy. This was stated by the leader of the Italian League party Matteo Salvini, inviting the allied countries to reconsider their approach, Politico reports.

Salvini said the sanctions meant to punish Moscow actually helped Russia, leading to an export surplus of $140 billion during the year ending July 2022.

His comments come just weeks before Italians go to the polls on September 25 to vote in a nationwide election that is expected to be won by the right-wing coalition that includes the League.

Salvini said the League supported aid measures for Ukraine at both the national and EU levels and he would not break with Western allies if they continued to impose sanctions, but he also urged other leaders to rethink their tactics.

He argued that a European response was needed to calm energy prices or thousands of jobs could be lost.