Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani will be in New York from 21 to 24 September to attend the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). This year’s theme – “Restoring trust, managing transformation: a United Nations that delivers for all” – will provide world leaders with an opportunity to discuss the challenges facing the multilateral system and the need to strengthen the United Nations’ capacity to respond effectively to these challenges.
Particular attention will be paid to international crises and coordination with key partners. On Monday 21st, Minister Tajani will chair the meeting of Foreign Ministers from the Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia) together with the “Friends of the Western Balkans’ Group” (Austria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Greece, Slovakia and Slovenia), in line with Italy’s commitment to accelerating the European integration of the countries in the region. The President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, will also attend the meeting to confirm the European institutions’ strategic focus on this issue. Minister Tajani will then hold a meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, with whom he will sign a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation regarding critical minerals. On the same day, the Minister will take part in an informal meeting of the European Union’s Foreign Affairs Council and the meeting of G7 Foreign Ministers.
On Tuesday 22nd, Minister Tajani will attend the opening of the General Assembly, leading the Italian delegation on behalf of the Prime Minister. Africa will be the focus of several events attended by the Italian delegation, including the high-level event organised by Italy on the refinancing of the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), scheduled for Wednesday 23rd and co-chaired by Minister Tajani and the Vice-President of Nigeria, Kashim Shettima Mustapha. The Minister will highlight the achievements of the Mattei Plan, which has become a model of cooperation on an equal footing for building partnerships aimed at creating shared value, opportunities and benefits.
Wednesday 23rd will also be dedicated to supporting Ukraine: in the morning, Minister Tajani will address the UN Security Council meeting on Ukraine, where he will reaffirm Italy’s condemnation of Russian attacks on the civilian population, the need for a ceasefire ahead of winter, and Italy’s comprehensive support for Ukraine, with a focus on energy resilience and reconstruction.
Thursday 24th will be dedicated to the Middle East. In the morning, the Minister will address the Ministerial Meeting on the Global Alliance for the Two-State Solution, which follows on from the meeting hosted in Rome last July and co-chaired by Minister Tajani and the Saudi Minister, Prince Faisal, in the presence of the Palestinian Authority’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Varsen Aghabekian. Minister Tajani will also highlight Italy’s leading role in the reconstruction of Gaza, in providing humanitarian aid and in hosting refugees, also through the “Food For Gaza” initiative and the university corridors. In the afternoon, the Foreign Minister will co-chair – alongside Croatian Minister Gordan Grlić Radman – the second meeting of the “Rome Coalition”, launched last May to facilitate access to fertilisers and ensure food security, against the backdrop of growing instability along major international maritime routes, from the Straits of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb to the Black Sea. The meeting will bring together the countries of the MED9 Group and partners from the League of Arab States and the Western Balkans, as well as Ukraine and representatives of various international and regional organisations.
The mission to New York will also provide an opportunity to meet with the Italian community and Italian companies in the United States. The Minister will inaugurate the new SIMEST office in New York, which will work in synergy with the ITA office, and will hold a meeting with the Italian Consuls in the United States and a meeting with fellow Italians in New York at the Italian Consulate.
