The Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Angelino Alfano, is on a diplomatic mission to Munich today and tomorrow to represent Italy at the Munich Security Conference, the most important annual event dedicated to this theme with the participation of Heads of State and Government, Ministers and the top-ranking officials of International Organizations.
The leitmotif of this year’s edition is the role of the European Union with special reference to its relations with the United States and Russia. Special emphasis will be placed on the future of the European Union. The Conference agenda will include very topical transnational issues such as: cybersecurity and cooperation between intelligence agencies; NATO-EU cooperation in the defence sector; energy security; the adoption of protectionist policies worldwide; the prospects of U.S. foreign policy.
“The Munich Conference reminds us that security is a common public good and that no nation has ever been safe in isolation, as history proves. We all share the responsibility of our mutual security,” affirmed Minister Alfano. He continued: “My participation offers me the opportunity to confirm the centrality that Italy attributes to the issue of international security, as well as the central role played by our Country in a year in which we hold the Chairmanship of the OSCE. Our Chairmanship keeps the attention highly focused on transnational security threats and on the respect for human rights as the pillars of peace and sustainable development.”
During his mission, the chief Italian diplomat will have a number of bilateral meetings with the EU Chief Negotiator for Brexit, the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Bahrein, Azerbaijan, the Sultanate of Oman, Georgia, Qatar, and with the Executive Director of the WFP. On Saturday, Minister Alfano will attend a working luncheon organised in partnership with the Secretariat of the OSCE and with the Center for Security Studies (CSS) at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, dedicated to cooperative security in Europe and the priorities of the Vienna-based Organization’s new Secretary General, Thomas Greminger.
