European Parliament Lawmakers From Berlusconi's Party Arrive in Moscow

The delegation of four lawmakers will try to facilitate dialogue between Europe and Russia.

ROME (Sputnik) — A group of European Parliament members from former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia party on Thursday arrived in Moscow to meet with their Russian counterparts and discuss Western sanctions, the delegation said in a statement.

In September, Berlusconi met with Russian President Vladimir Putin during a private visit to Crimea.

“We arrived in Moscow following [the visit to Russia of] Silvio Berlusconi, who has always been working to facilitate a dialogue between Russia and Europe, and more broadly, to promote peace,” according to a statement obtained by RIA Novosti.

The delegation consists of four lawmakers, including Elisabetta Gardini, Stefano Maullu, Alessandra Mussolini and Aldo Patriciello.

The statement also contained information about what high-ranking Russian officials the delegation will meet with during their two-day visit, including parliamentary speaker Sergei Naryshkin, with whom they will discuss cooperation between the two countries' parliaments as well as the sanctions imposed on Moscow.

In June, Berlusconi said that his Forza Italia party would advocate for lifting the anti-Russia economic sanctions imposed by the European Union over the Ukrainian crisis.

The United States, the European Union and their allies introduced several rounds of sanctions against Russia in 2014, accusing it of interfering in the Ukrainian crisis. Russia has repeatedly refuted the allegations.