ROME - "Russia has entered this election campaign.” This is how Enrico Letta, leader of the Democratic Party (PD) puts it, in an interview with by the Spanish newspaper El Periódico.

 He hints at an alleged Russian interference with the Italian elections. He thinks the centre-right coalition is catering to the exigencies of the Russian government, engendering its active support.

 “There is a strong interference of Russia in favour of the right because (the Russian government) knows that our position will continue to be in line with the position against Putin”, he says

 His remarks are vague, they bring to mind the centre-right's reiterated political convergence with the interests purported by Putin in the past, but offer no founded evidence as to support the present claims.

 The Leage (Lega), Brother of Italy (FdI), and Forza Italia have a history of extolling the qualities of the Russian leadership, entertaining more than amicable relations, and nurturing personal sympathies.

 Let us recollect, within the vast repertoire of t-shirts worn by Matteo Salvini, secretary of the League, the one adorned with a stylised Putin in the guise of a field marshall flaunted in Moscow's Red Square. The hasty backtracking after the considerable embarrassment procured by the outbreak of war, the awkward journey to the Ukrainian border in a vain attempt to save face, and the subsequent public outcry accusing the whole affair of shameless political adventurism.

 Letta recalls in the interview Berlusconi’s rubbing of shoulders with Putin. He remarks on their close friendship. The ex-Italian premier shared several moments of revelry with the Russian president. Could he be possibly accused of enabling Russian sabotage for this reason? The connections that might suggest so are extremely tentative and weak.

 Does the shadow cast by Moscow really stretch far and wide, or are we overestimating the scope of its influence ? Russia certainly has been accused of meddling with elections in the past, let us think back to the alleged involvement in the 2016 American Election.

 Presently, Letta's warning of a Russian intrusion, appears more akin to a political baton with which the opposition can be beated.

dm