"Today's priorities are
stabilizing the Balkan area and accompanying the EU accession
process. The decision to grant candidate status to Ukraine,
Moldova, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, strongly supported by the
Italian government, confirms the vitality of the European
project and the need to continue with renewed determination on
the path taken." Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said this in a
video message sent to the Conference of the Chairmen of the
Foreign Commissions and Parliamentary Delegates of the CEI
member countries, underway in Trieste.
"The Balkans and the whole region are a priority of the Italian
government's foreign policy," the minister reiterated.
According to Tajani, it is significant that "Today's meeting
"takes place in Trieste, a historical and future crossroads of
Europe. It is in Trieste that, not by chance, last January, I
wanted to hold the conference on the Balkans, the first stage in
defining a national strategy that would mark Italy's newfound
prominence and promote growth and integration aiming at
stability and security."
"Also because of my personal experience," he added, "I am a
convinced supporter of the role of parliamentary diplomacy; it
can give a strong impulse to political dialogue, integrate the
action of governments, bring different cultures and
sensibilities closer together, and promote the values that unite
us." The CEI, he said, "is the oldest forum for regional
cooperation in the area and can claim a historic role in
contributing to the reunification process of the European
continent after the collapse of the Soviet bloc. More than 30
years later, the CEI continues to represent a privileged forum
to support the reunification process of Europe" and "will always
find in Italy a constant point of reference."
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