The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Antonio Tajani, opens today the 18th Conference of Italian Ambassadors to the World tomorrow at the Foreign Ministry. The President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, will speak at the opening ceremony, while the various working sessions will be attended by many Government Ministers and foreign dignitaries, including the German Foreign Minister, Johann Wadephul, and the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Ivanova Georgieva.
The Conference will take place in Rome, at the Foreign Ministry, on Monday 15 and Tuesday 16, and will move to Milan on December 17 and 18, turning into a “National Conference on Exports and Business Internationalization.” The Conference aims to provide over 150 Heads of Italian diplomatic missions with an opportunity to reflect on the results achieved over the past year by our diplomacy in protecting the national interest, starting with our commitment to peace and security in all crisis areas, moving on to humanitarian initiatives, particularly in Gaza, and finally to initiatives to promote growth and counter policies that distort international trade, and to protect our companies, such as the Action Plan for Italian Exports Worldwide.
In a complex and evolving international context, this year’s Conference will have an increasingly operational nature, also focusing on the new tools available to our foreign policy in light of the reform of the Foreign Ministry, which will enter into force on January 1, 2026. The Conference will therefore be divided into a series of sessions dedicated to the challenges of migration; energy supplies; the new frontiers of diplomacy in the cyber and digital age; major international crises; and tools to further enhance Italy’s international presence and attractiveness.
A specific session will be dedicated to “Collaboration between Italy and Germany in the Face of New Challenges for Europe,” where the German Foreign Minister, Johann Wadephul, will speak alongside Minister Tajani. The Conference will conclude with the usual meeting with the trade unions representing MAECI staff.
The Conference will then continue in Milan on Wednesday, December 17, and Thursday, December 18, beginning with the third National Conference on Exports and Business Internationalization. On Thursday, December 18, the Foreign Ministry’s delegation will participate in a Conference on the Internationalization of the Italian University System at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan. Following this, our Ambassadors will be received at Palazzo Mezzanotte, home of the Italian Stock Exchange, for a meeting dedicated to the relationship between finance, diplomacy, and the growth of the Italian system to strengthen the international competitiveness of Italian companies.
