Italy tries to calm Libya in Mohammad T-shirt row

Fri, May 9 05:49 PM

By Stephen Brown

ROME (Reuters) - An Italian minister from an anti-immigrant party who wore a T-shirt that offended Muslims in 2006 said on Friday the gesture was misunderstood and his appointment should not damage relations with Libya.

Roberto Calderoli of the Northern League was named this week as a member of the new government of Silvio Berlusconi, who was installed as prime minister for a third term.

Berlusconi, facing a diplomatic clash -- and possible energy sanctions -- after Libya made clear its anger at his choice of cabinet minister, said he was "confident we will be able to clarify and calm down the sitution with Libyan authorities".

Calderoli quit Berlusconi's last government in 2006 after wearing a T-shirt with a Danish cartoon of the Prophet Mohammad that angered Muslims worldwide. He was blamed for rioting that broke out at Italy's consulate in the Libyan city of Benghazi.

Returning as minister for "simplification" -- a new post without a full ministerial portfolio -- Calderoli was asked by Italian television about Libya's angry response to his appointment, and whether he regretted the T-shirt incident.

He said he was sorry for the consequences of his act which he said was misinterpreted as anti-Islamic provocation.

"Mine was a message of peace and rapprochement between the monotheistic religions but was misunderstood," he said. "I hope there aren't any problems today linked to something in the past that should be considered water under the bridge."

Since the T-shirt incident, Calderoli has continued to offend Muslims in Italy by protesting at the construction of new mosques and threatening "pig day" protests to defile them. He once walked his own pet pig over a site intended for a mosque.

Libya warned of "catastrophic consequences" if he got a cabinet post and reacted to his swearing-in on Thursday by saying it would no longer cooperate with Italy on preventing illegal immigrants from Africa landing on Italian shores.

The Libyan government was reported to be preparing sanctions against Italy such as shelving an agreement to extend the activities of Italian energy company ENI in Libya.

Italy's new foreign minister, Franco Frattini, defended Berlusconi's "right and duty to choose his own ministers. This is a fundamental principle of democracy".

Italy is Libya's main trading partner in Europe and ENI's Libyan assets are the subject of negotiations in the company's landmark cooperation deal with Russia's Gazprom.

The Northern League, a long-standing ally of Berlusconi, is know for its vehement anti-immigrant rhetoric. The party made surprise gains in mid-April's election and was rewarded with four cabinet posts, including the Interior Ministry.

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