The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Antonio Tajani, is on a mission to Tunisia, together with the Minister of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry, Francesco Lollobrigida, and the Minister of Labour and Social Policies, Marina Elvira Calderone.
“We want to engage with our partners in the region to avert the destabilisation of the entire Middle East”, the Deputy Prime Minister commented, adding that “we must continue to work for a diplomatic solution to the conflict triggered by the barbaric aggression of Hamas”.
Following his recent visits to Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Israel and Jordan and his numerous telephone contacts with key international and regional actors, Tajani is thus continuing his diplomatic efforts to foster de-escalation.
In Tunis, Deputy Prime Minister and Ministers Lollobrigida and Calderoni will be received by the President of Tunisia, Kais Saied, for talks. Tajani will also have a bilateral meeting with the Tunisian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nabil Ammar, just as Ministers Lollobrigida and Calderone will meet their Tunisian counterparts, Abdelmonem Belati, Minister of Agriculture, and Malek Zahi, Minister of Social Affairs.
As Tajani stressed, “the relationship with Tunis continues to be of strategic importance for Italy: for months we have been engaged in dialogue with the Tunisian authorities, which we hope to further deepen and structure”.
At the centre of the Deputy Prime Minister’s talk will be also the issue of the fight against human trafficking. In fact, the signing of a Memorandum on the promotion of regular migration flows is planned.
In the course of the visit, Ministers Tajani, Lollobrigida and Calderone will participate in the closing session of a mission of Italian institutional actors and entrepreneurs who are in Tunis to meet their Tunisian counterparts in the agro-industry and agrifood security sectors. This mission aims to develop structured cooperation between Italy and Tunisia in the sectors of agriculture, water management and research and innovation.
Finally, a meeting of the three ministers with the business community and the Italian community in Tunisia is planned. In 2022, Italy was Tunisia’s leading trade partner, with an interchange of EUR 7.1 billion, up by 29.6% compared to 2021. Also in terms of entrepreneurial presence, there are more than 900 Italian companies active in Tunisia, contributing to the generation of more than 70,000 jobs.
