Franco Venturini
Italian journalist Franco Venturini (b. 1946) started out with Rome's Il Tempo, then became Corriere della Sera’s correspondent in Moscow in 1986. He now editorialises for the Milan-based daily, specialising in international politics.
Updated: 31 August 2010
At the European Council of 23 October, Germany and France passed out some good marks and some bad marks to partners in trouble in the eurozone – to Italy, notably. While the criticism of the inertia of the Berlusconi government is justified, the current crisis is equally down to the sluggish reactions that Berlin and Paris have shown ever since the beginning, writes the Corriere della Sera. 
When it comes to foreign policy, national interests will sometimes trump lofty moral principles. But the Libyan leader’s latest provocations and blackmail attempts beat all.