ROME – The new Minister of Defence, Elisabetta Trenta, has requested to transfer her husband, the army captain Claudio Passarelli, from his post as officer in charge of the national deputy director of armaments' secretariat to the General Affairs office.

 Trenta, who was sworn in on June 1 by the anti-establishment Five Star Movement Party, requested this move on Monday after facing accusations of conflict of interest by opposition parties, including the Deputy of the Democratic Party, Michele Anzaldi.

 "The decision confirms that our complaints of conflict of interest were fully founded, although they were accepted in total silence by the premier Conte, the deputies Di Maio and Salvini and the major M5S exponents, starting with Grillo and Di Battista," Anzaldi said on Facebook.

 The Ministry of Defence confirmed that it was her first official act as leader of their division, and was required as a “matter of expediency”.

 Trenta responded to the accusations made against her by opposition parties with a post on Facebook, which read: "I have not missed an opportunity to extinguish any sterile debate promoted in these last few hours by some political forces. Although my husband has never in fact dealt with armaments, contrary to what is written in the press, I have asked for his transfer to the General Affairs office, headed by a civilian director, who oversees the organisational and logistical needs of the general secretariat.The M5S works in this way, with transparency and coherence, on top of every small - and unjustified as in this case - suspicion. Long live Italy!"

 Trenta, 51, is considered a great expert in defence, security and international cooperation. She teaches at Link Campus University, and was political advisor to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Iraq (2005-2006). She was then appointed country advisory for the Defence in Lebanon (2009) and made president of the non-profit organisation, SudgestAid.

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