Minister Tajani chairs meeting with Italian Ambassadors in crisis areas

Today from the Crisis Unit of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Italy's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Antonio Tajani chaired a meeting attended by the highest authorities of the Ministry and by the Italian Ambassadors based in crisis areas, who participated via video conference.

Particular attention was devoted to supporting Italian nationals. In this regard, Minister Tajani stated that "the Italian Government remains committed to supporting Italians in crisis areas: Italian Embassies, Consulates and the Crisis Unit are always at the service of Italian citizens in difficulty around the world". He also reminded participants that about 2000 Italian nationals were assisted in leaving Ukraine during the first weeks of the Russian aggression and more than 1200 Italians were evacuated from Israel following the Hamas attack.

"I brought together the Italian Heads of Mission in a number of key countries to take stock of the situation on the major international crises, in particular Ukraine and the Middle East. With the G7 Foreign Ministers' Meeting held in Capri last month, the Italian G7 Presidency sent an important message of unity and common commitment, confirming Italy's leading role as a global actor. We must continue our efforts: with today's meeting, I received feedback from our Ambassadors abroad and gave them guidelines on the course of action to be taken to pursue the Italian Government's peace policy," stated Deputy Prime Minister Tajani.

With regard to the crisis in the Gaza Strip, Italy reaffirmed its commitment to political and diplomatic action at the international level to seek an agreement on the ceasefire, as well as its willingness to contribute to the post-ceasefire period and to reconstruction initiatives. Italy's effort within the "Food for Gaza" initiative, which aims to coordinate humanitarian assistance activities in the food security sector, will also continue, as will its action to welcome Palestinians requiring hospital treatment in Italy.

As for the conflict in Ukraine, Italy's strong support for Kyiv was reiterated, as well as the importance attributed to the reconstruction of the Country, and in particular to Odessa. Attention was also focused on the need to provide assistance and protection to Italian companies and citizens in Russia, particularly after the recent case involving Ariston, which led to the convening of a dedicated working table for companies, chaired by Minister Tajani.