EU – Foreign Affairs Council – Syria: partial waiver of oil embargo for opposition

In a show of support for the struggle against the Assad regime, the European foreign ministers approved a partial waiver of the embargo on Syrian oil. European firms will be allowed to import the portion sold by the opposition, which may also be supplied the equipment necessary to extract it. This was established by the […]

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OSLO – Music Academy students compete for the Verdi prize

On 16 April the Italian Cultural Institute hosted the “Verdi Prize” on the occasion of the composer’s 200th birthday, arranged to coincide with International Voice Day, to stimulate the understanding and practice of lyric studies among the younger generations. The event was carried out in collaboration with the Oslo Opera House. Read more, in Italian.

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COOPERAZIONE – Italia in campo per Sanita’ Pubblica Palestinese (in translation)

Contribuire allo sviluppo della sanità pubblica palestinese e, attraverso il miglioramento delle condizioni di vita, favorire la distensione tra i popoli in Medio Oriente. Queste la finalita’ del progetto di cooperazione italo-palestinese promosso dalla Seconda universita’ di Napoli (Sun). In collaborazione con altri atenei e istituzioni scientifiche, i docenti della Sun si occuperanno della formazione […]

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MOSCOW – Italian school turns 40

Originally intended for the children of Italian embassy staff during the years of the USSR, the “Italo Calvino” School of Moscow ­– which turns 40 this year – is now frequented predominately by Russians with a passion for Italy and is the only Italian school in the Russian Federation. Read more, in Italian.

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EU Foreign Affairs Council – Dassù in Luxembourg. Agenda includes Syria, Lebanon and Balkans

Developments in Syria, Lebanon and Mali, as well as the Serbia-Kosovo accord, will be topics of discussion by the European Union’s foreign ministers, with Deputy Minister Marta Dassù representing Italy, meeting today in Luxembourg. It is expected that last Thursday’s decision in Brussels to lift the embargo on oil sales by the Syrian opposition will […]

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Intervento Dassù: Amici Siria a Istanbul, soluzione politica per stop bagno sangue

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to our Turkish hosts for convening this meeting which is a timely follow up to the discussions we held in Rome last February. Let’s be honest. The crisis in Syria has worsened considerably with no solution at hand. It has reached higher levels of violence and taken […]

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Syria: Friends of Syria meet in Istanbul, political solution to end bloodbath

At the end of a marathon meeting in Istanbul that ended at 1:00 in the morning, the foreign ministers of the 11 Westerns and Muslim country members of the Friends of Syria, Italy included, called for the launch of negotiations toward a political solution capable of ending the bloodbath. 123 million dollars in non-lethal aid […]

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Italy-Turkey: Deputy Minister Dassu’ meets with Turkish Foreign Minister Bagis

In an Italo-Turkish bilateral meeting held shortly before the start of the ministerial meeting in Istanbul of the Friends of Syria, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs Marta Dassù met with the Minister for Europe of the Ankara government Egemen Bagis. EU-Turkey negotiation prospects Dassù and Bagis discussed prospects for negotiations between the European Union and […]

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SYRIA: Friends of Syria Summit. Deputy Minister Marta Dassù represents Italy

The ministerial meeting in Istanbul of the representatives of the 11 country members of the Friends of Syria follows on the heels of the Rome meeting in late February. Italy is represented by Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs Marta Dassù. Primary goal remains political solution In line with the conclusions of the Rome meeting, the […]

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Contatti tra il Vice Ministro degli Affari Esteri, Marta Dassù, il Ministro degli Esteri serbo Ivan Mrkic e il Ministro degli Esteri Kosovaro Enver Hoxhaj.

Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs Marta Dassù was in contact in the evening with Minister for Foreign Affairs of Serbia Ivan Mrkic, who expressed deep gratitude for Italy’s support, and with Minister for Foreign Affairs of Kosovo Enver Hoxhaj.Deputy Minister Dassù expressed to both ministers her “warmest congratulations” for the agreement reached today in Brussels […]

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Premier and interim Foreign Minister Mario Monti hails Belgrade-Pristina accord

Premier and interim Foreign Minister Mario Monti expressed his “deep satisfaction” today with the agreement reached in Brussels between Belgrade and Pristina. “This is an historic accord”, Monti asserted, recalling that “in our frequent contacts with the authorities of Belgrade and Pristina, Italy has always encouraged both parties to take advantage of this excellent window […]

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ITALY-USA – Urbino Award to Wolf Blitzer

Italian ambassador to the U.S. in Washington Claudio Bisogniero announced Wolf Blitzer, conductor of the CNN television programme “The Situation Room” Wolf Blitzer, as winner of the 8th annual Urbino Press Award – this year’s being a special edition as one the many events organized for the 2013 “Year of Italian Culture in the USA”. […]

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