“Comunità italiana di Politica Estera” (Italian Foreign Policy Community), a project funded under Art. 23 bis of Italian Presidential Decree 18/1967, presented its first publication addressing the impact of the conflict in the MENA region, which is available at this link.
The initiative was born from the need to promote constant dialogue between some of the leading Italian organisations active in the field of international studies and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation in order to foster strategic reflection on Italy’s action in the world. It also offers a channel for constant dialogue with an important component of Italy’s civil society, working as a system to capitalise on the country’s best resources. Five research institutes take part in the “Comunità italiana di Politica Estera”: Aspen Italia, the Centre for Politics and International Studies (Centro Studi Politica Internazionale, CESPI), the Italian division of the European Council of Foreign Affairs (ECFR), the Institute of International Affairs (Istituto Affari Internazionali, IAI) and the Italian Institute for International Political Studies (Istituto per gli Studi di Politica Internazionale, ISPI).
The publication is the result of the debate that took place during the first meeting between the top management of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and experts in the area. The publication, jointly written by the consortium of the five research institutes, analyses the effects of the conflict on a region of primary interest for Italy. The effects of the conflict on the main players in the area, the consequences on the region’s socio-economic structures and Italy’s and the EU’s scope for action in this geopolitical context are examined in depth.
The initiative and the publication point in the direction of an ever-increasing synergy between two sources of knowledge in the field of international relations, namely researchers and officials and policy-makers, with the aim of providing analyses that are more oriented towards outlining systemic trends and anticipating possible future scenarios, while at the same time providing experts with the useful insight gained from the day-to-day evaluations and activities of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI).
This makes it possible to provide a plurality of viewpoints and analyses to influence decision-making processes, ensuring greater awareness and choice in the pursuit of Italy’s interests in the world.
In the coming months, the “Comunità italiana di Politica Estera” project will hold further meetings and continue to disseminate its publications, so as to maintain this virtuous cooperation and develop an ever-closer relationship between experts and diplomats.
