Rome - (AFP) - Tens of thousands of people demonstrated in Rome on Saturday for peace in Ukraine and to demand that the Italian government stop sending weapons to counter the Russian invasion.

The demonstrators carried a large banner reading "No to war... No to sending arms," while the voices of the demonstrators, who were estimated by the police to number about 30,000, chanted, "Give peace a chance."

Italy, one of the founding members of NATO, has been supporting Ukraine since the start of the conflict at the end of February, by supplying it with weapons in particular.

Far-right Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced that this will not change and that the government plans to send additional military equipment soon.

But others, including former Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, argue that Italy should intensify negotiations instead.

"The weapons were sent in the beginning under the pretext that they would prevent escalation," one of the demonstrators, Roberto Zanotto, told AFP. "After nine months, it seems to me that there is an escalation. Look at the facts: sending arms did not help stop the war. Weapons contribute to fueling the conflict." ".

And the student, Sarah Gianpietro, considered that the conflict would prolong the delivery of weapons to Ukraine, and this would lead to "economic consequences for our country, and for respect for human rights as well."

On Friday, the foreign ministers of the G7 countries, including Italy, pledged to continue supporting Ukraine in its war against Russia.