The 67th UN General Assembly, which got under way on 18 September, launched into the central themes of debate with the participation of heads of state and government that began on 25 September. Italy is represented by Premier Mario Monti and Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi whose respective focus include: the Millennium Goals, climate change, food security, the role of mediation in peaceful conflict resolution, disarmament, UN reform and the reassertion of the Assembly’s role in global governance.
Security Council programme
In programma, in parallelo, il 26 settembre il Consiglio di Sicurezza si riunirà a livello ministeriale sul Medio Oriente e in particolare sulla Siria mentre il giorno prima l’alto rappresentante della politica estera Ue Catherine Ashton ha convocato una riunione del consiglio dei ministri della Ue in margine all’assemblea generale dell’Onu, per un confronto su questioni ‘calde’ come Siria, Iran. La Siria, in particolare, sarà un argomento che trasversalmente attraverserà tutte le riunioni in programma e che sarà al centro del Consiglio di Sicurezza: la comunità internazionale vuole accelerare la preparazione del dopo-Assad e le riunioni dell’Onu potranno dare impulso a questo percorso, Russia e Cina permettendo. On a parallel programme, the UN Security Council met at ministerial level on 26 September to discuss the Middle East, in particular Syria; the day before EU High representative for Foreign Policy Catherine Ashton has convened a meeting for the day before of the council of EU ministers on the sidelines of the UNGA to discuss hot topics such as Syria and Iran. Syria will be on the agenda of all the meetings planned and of the Security Council. The international community wants to accelerate post-Assad preparations and the UN meetings could give impetus to that objective, Russia and China permitting.
Monti is scheduled to speak at the UN on Wednesday, and during the same day a ministerial level meeting on UN reform will be held of the Uniting for Consensus Group, of which Italy is President, with the aim of resuming efforts to reach a compromise that will unblock negotiations under way for almost 20 days now.
Terzi, focus on human rights
Italy’s focus will be on human rights, religious freedom, and the pursuance of the campaign for a moratorium on the death penalty, ahead of its universal abolition – all essential components of foreign policy, along with the broader defence of all fundamental rights. According to Minister Terzi, the Italian government’s commitment on the human rights front will be pointedly confirmed before the United Nations’ 194 members. He made it clear that Italy was aiming for a resolution “voted in by all member countries and that condemns, without mitigation, all forms of religious intolerance”. Precisely in order to obtain the broadest consensus possible, the foreign ministry has been making intense preparations and raising awareness, first of all among European partners who have agreed to place religious freedom among the Union’s priorities.
Terzi participates in Social Media Week
Minister Terzi is participating through a streaming link in the inaugural session of Social Media Week, the largest world scale event on the state of the art of the social media and digital communication. The event (24-28 September), which takes place simultaneously every year in 15 major international metropolises such as Los Angeles, Madrid, London, Hong Kong, Sao Paolo and others, also involves Italy. Its goal is to explore the social, cultural and economic impact of the new media on professionals and knowledge production, on communications and the use of free time. The 2012 edition’s theme is “Empowering Change through Collaboration”. “As the recent events of the Arab Spring have demonstrated, the new digital media can play a fundamental role in the democratic growth of nations”, reads the title of Minister Terzi’s speech, which will open the panel on the “New Media in War Zones”.
