The conference “New visions for the Western Balkans 2025” was held this morning at the Farnesina, organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI) together with the Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI), to explore the prospects for European integration of the Western Balkan countries and Italy’s key role in this process.
The event was opened by the Undersecretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Maria Tripodi, who took part in the conference on behalf of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Antonio Tajani. “The commitment to supporting the stability of the Western Balkans and their European perspective has always been a cornerstone of Italian foreign policy, which the Government will continue to pursue with consistency and determination, driven by Minister Tajani and involving the entire Italian economic system”, stated the Undersecretary.
The Government’s goal is to bring “more Italy to the Western Balkans” within the framework of a strong and balanced European presence, aimed at making the European Union the region’s principal and most reliable partner. The Western Balkans are a historic crossroads of trade and development: at the heart of Europe. The Western Balkans are a natural bridge to the East and at the same time an integral part of the Mediterranean—an outlook that Italy has always sought to enhance, as demonstrated by their inclusion in the recent Med Dialogues.
The Undersecretary emphasised that Europe and Italy can no longer afford to leave this area outside the “common European home” for much longer. This is why the Government will continue to work intensively, using all available tools—including financial instruments—to foster the region’s integration with the rest of the continent. Among these, in addition to bilateral cooperation initiatives, particular importance is attached to the EU’s institutional strengthening projects (Twinning and TAIEX), where Italy is a leading Member State in terms of awarded projects, thanks to the excellence of its experts. Equally significant are the activities promoted by the Central European Initiative (CEI), through Italy’s CEI Fund at the EBRD, and by the Adriatic-Ionian Initiative, which—through its support of the EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian Region (EUSAIR)—is making a substantial contribution to cohesion across the Adriatic shores.
“All these initiatives demonstrate the consistency and determination with which the Italian Government is concretely supporting the Western Balkan countries on their path towards European integration”, concluded the Undersecretary.
