Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani met in Rome with the President of the Palestinian National Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, during his visit to Italy to meet with the Prime Minister.
The agenda of the talks included an update on the situation in Gaza. Minister Tajani provided updates on the ongoing dialogue between Italy and the various parties involved, including last week’s meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the recent missions of our Special Envoy for Gaza to Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Egypt, and most recently to Washington.
Minister Tajani reiterated the need to strengthen the ceasefire and reaffirmed his support for President Trump’s Peace Plan, expressing his hope that the second phase can soon be started, including the disarmament of Hamas, which shall have no role in the future Palestinian government.
He emphasized that Italy is strengthening its presence in the Civil Military Coordination Center (CMCC) in Kiryat Gat, where it is working to increase security and humanitarian flows. In this regard, the Minister confirmed that our Carabinieri at EUBAM Rafah are ready to assist in the reopening of the crossing, when the conditions are there, and to contribute to the training of Palestinian police authorities.
With specific reference to humanitarian aid and reconstruction, the Foreign Minister emphasized Italy’s role, with €60 million announced for healthcare, defence, governance, food security, and education, in addition to the €110 million already mobilized in humanitarian aid, including through the Food for Gaza initiative. In line with the priorities indicated by the Palestinian Authority, Italy is working on a humanitarian and reconstruction aid package. In addition to these efforts, medical evacuations have so far involved 232 Palestinian minors, who arrived in Italy for being treated, along with their accompanying persons. The last group arrived in Italy on December 8. Including university corridors, and family reunifications, a total of approximately 1,500 Palestinians arrived in Italy (thus making Italy the first Western country in terms of the number of people welcomed from the Gaza Strip).
