Italy has always supported the European integration process, deemed fundamental to promoting and achieving the goals of peace, freedom, security and wellbeing for Italians and for Europeans in general. As a founding country, Italy has accompanied the process of European integration in all its stages, making Rome an essential crossroads in the history of the construction of European unity. Italy therefore sees in its EU membership a historic choice that has united the continent after decades of wars and that today enables Member States to address global challenges – from climate change to digital transition, to health and energy emergencies – that individual countries would not be able to tackle equally effectively on their own.
In this section dedicated to Italy’s role in the Union, the main Italian milestones in the EU history of the last sixty years are retraced. It is also possible to dwell on the outcomes of the last Italian Presidency of the EU Council, which took place from July 1 to December 31, 2014 (the next one is scheduled for the first half of 2028). Finally, it is possible to look back at the celebrations for the 60th anniversary of the Treaties of Rome preceded in 2016 by a strong reaffirmation of the commitment of the 6 founding countries (Italy, Germany, France, Benelux) to build a stronger Union, with the involvement of all the Member States that share the need to continue along the path of integration.