The Minister’s first stop was in Canberra, where he had a dense agenda of institutional meetings, which began at the Parliament House with the Minister for International Development and the Pacific, Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, and with his colleague, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, with whom Minister Alfano signed a Memorandum of Understanding on bilateral dialogue.
The day’s agenda continued with the Minister’s meetings with the Minister for the Defence Industry, Cristopher Pyne, and with the Minister for Defence, Sen. Marise Payne.
In Adelaide, Minister Alfano met with the Italian community and attended the opening of an exhibition by the Italian Space Agency at Flinders University, followed by the presentation of the project entitled “Maritime Innovation Challenge”, co-developed by Fincantieri, CETENA and Flinders University.
The Italian Foreign Minister then attended the inauguration of Fincantieri’s offices and a meeting with the Italian-Australian business community organised by the Chamber of Commerce of Sydney.
Minister Alfano then took part in the preview of the first celebration of the “Targa Florio in Australia”, which staged a pageant of vintage cars, where he handed over the Tricolore flag to former Formula 1 driver Arturo Merzario, who was the flag-bearer at the race.
The Minister’s visit closed with a promotional gala dinner attended by the representatives of local institutions, of the business community and of the culture sector. The event showcased Italian points of excellence and included a catwalk of Italian-designed fashion and jewels and a video-message from astronaut Paolo Nespoli from outer space.
