Italy’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Antonio Tajani will be on a mission to Brussels on 3 and 4 December to attend the meeting of the Atlantic Alliance’s Foreign Ministers.
Also at Italy’s urging, on the agenda for the meeting to be chaired by new Secretary General Mark Rutte, the first session will be dedicated to the Southern Neighbourhood, with King Abdallah II of Jordan on hand. Discussion will focus on the situation in the Middle East and on the commitment to forge a path towards peace in the region.
“After yesterday’s meeting in Cairo, it is important for the situation in the Middle East to be treated in the context of the Atlantic Alliance as well,” said Minister Tajani. “We are highly concerned over the region’s stability and the possible repercussions on the civilian population, also in terms of migration. Dialogue with our Arab partners is essential for achieving peace. Here, we hope that NATO will now devote greater attention to the Southern Neighbourhood, by fully implementing the Action Plan for the Southern Flank adopted at the Washington Summit,” the Foreign Minister continued.
The meeting will go on to discussing Ukraine and the ways to ensure support for Kyiv as it continues to defend itself against Russian aggression, now aggravated by North Korea’s involvement, with a view to reaching a just peace. Minister Tajani will reassert Italy’s full support to Ukraine in its G7 Presidency as well, as confirmed to the Ukrainian minister Sybiha at the recent Ministerial meeting in Fiuggi-Anagni.
The Ministers will then discuss the strategic challenges for the Alliance, also with a view to NATO’s June 2025 Hague Summit. “Our commitment must be to maintain the Organization as a pillar of our relationship with the United States, in order to respond to growing threats to trans-Atlantic security. In this perspective, it will also be essential to increase NATO-EU synergy, especially for the European defence industry,” Tajani emphasized. In his contribution, the minister will urge the utmost attention to the situation in the Western Balkans, also in light of the recent explosion involving the Zubin Potok aqueduct in northern Kosovo.
