Somalia: Completing the transition – Terzi opens the Contact Group meeting in Rome (2 July)
On Monday 2 July, Minister Giulio Terzi will open the sessions of the International Contact Group on Somalia, which is the forum in which the international community coordinates its efforts toward the stabilisation of Somalia. Participants include Somali political leaders and approximately 45 delegations, and meets at least twice annually within the context of the […]
Read moreSyria – new UN initiatives – Annan proposes transitional government, meeting in Geneva
Kofi Annan has redoubled his efforts to avert civil war in Syria where, according to a UN inquiry commission, battles are “increasingly militarised”, with weapons being replenished on both sides. The UN Special Envoy has proposed the institution of a transitional government in Syria made up of supporters of Bashar al-Assad and members of the […]
Read morePakistan: the Jahanabad Buddha restored
The Jahanabad Buddha is coming back to life thanks to Italy, with funds from the Pakistan debt conversion. The restoration of the 6th-7th century A.D. statue is being done by ISIAO (Italian institute for Asia and the Orient) in partnership with the province of Khyber Pakthunkwa and the collaboration of non-governmental organisation ISCOS-CISL. At the […]
Read moreLebanon: a model for the Arab world, says Terzi
“Lebanon’s stability is essential to the region, and with its recent resumption of national dialogue, Beirut stands as a model for the entire Arab world”. This was the comment by Minister Terzi on a visit to Beirut at the end of talks with Lebanese institutional leaders. He added that, on the Syrian crisis, the Lebanese […]
Read moreItaly for the Mediterranean, information and development
The Mediterranean is a mirror for many of our problems – the Arab spring was not followed by a happy summer – and Rome has a pivotal place in this picture as a link between north and south. The seminar “Italy for the Mediterranean region – information and development” opened at the foreign ministry in […]
Read moreSOFIA: a summer of contemporary italian art
A painting exhibition and two installations – one of photos the other a mural are the summer events organised by the Italian Cultural Institute of Sofia. “Bulgare Visioni”, a exhibit that opened on 20 June at the National Gallery of Foreign Art of paintings by Silvio Formichetti, piqued the attention of the Bulgarian media, as […]
Read moreCZECH REPUBLIC: “L’irrazionale geometrico”, exhibition by Achille Perilli in Pilsen
The Pilsen gallery is hosting the exhibition ‘L’irrazionale geometrico’ by Achille Perilli, one of Italy’s greatest living artists, who has been working for over 60 years on the problems of colour and what he refers to as “surface dynamics”, and has participated in all the most important moments of 20th century artistic experimentation. The exhibit […]
Read moreBelgrade – Conference on scientific collaboration between Italy and Serbia
On 25 and 26 June the Dean of the University of Belgrade hosted the international conference “Serbia – Italia: Status and Perspective of the Scientific and Technological Bilateral Cooperation”, organized by the Embassy of Italy in Belgrade in collaboration with the University of Belgrade, coinciding with the first meeting of the members’ assembly of the […]
Read moreSyria: New EU sanctions – NATO condemns Turkish plane downing
International pressure tightens on Syria. During a meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council in Luxembourg on 25 June the European Union approved a new package of sanctions against the Damascus regime and condemned the downing of a Turkish military plane by Syria. NATO expressed the same condemnation in an extraordinary meeting convened in Brussels on […]
Read moreCrimes against Christians: De Mistura urges synergy between diplomacy and civil society
The struggle against hatred of Christians in the world and the role of the civil society, are the focus of a workshop organised on 26 and 17 June at the foreign ministry in Rome by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights. Speaking at the opening session, Under-Secretary Staffan De Mistura recalled Italy’s […]
Read more