00:00His Majesty King Hamad for this historic opportunity that the Gulf Cooperation Council is offering to Italy.
00:11Italy is a nation with an ancient heart, with a forward-looking attitude,
00:19capable of captivating the world with its identity,
00:24and trying to play a leading role in the European and international stage.
00:28A nation bearing in its own DNA features such as dialogue, ability to confront with everyone, and respect for its interlocutor.
00:43This is our tradition. It is what has always characterized us.
00:48It is the asset that has allowed the Italian civilization to get contaminated and enriched, yet never losing itself.
01:00It is a story lost in the midst of time.
01:03The Limes Arabicus, the border between the Roman Empire and the Arabian Peninsula,
01:13was not a rigid separation, but a space for transit, communication, and trade,
01:21crossed by that spice route that united ancient Rome and India after crossing the Mediterranean.
01:29And Italy could never conceive of itself without the Mediterranean,
01:36the very heart of the world's political, cultural, and commercial exchanges for millennia,
01:43and still today the shortest route of communication between the planet's two great maritime spaces,
01:51the Atlantic Ocean and the Indo-Pacific.
01:54A sea that occupies only 1% of the world's water,
02:01yet it is crossed by 20% of the world's maritime traffic,
02:09thanks to the Suez Canal connection.
02:12This is how geography and history have shaped our relationship
02:16and are destined to chart our common future,
02:20because I'm convinced that considering both the Mediterranean and the Gulf
02:26as regional seas,
02:29alien to the great challenges,
02:32is reductive.
02:34I see them instead as spaces that project their action
02:38far beyond their physical and natural boundaries,
02:43spaces that together can be protagonists
02:47of major intercontinental interconnections.
02:51This vision spurs us to behave as natural partners,
02:57and I am convinced we can be an engine of cooperation
03:01and by uniting the West and East, I mean Europe and Asia,
03:07we can contribute to helping overcome the visions.
03:10If I look at the map,
03:14I see that the Mediterranean and the Gulf
03:17guard some of the most important and strategic passages
03:21at the global level,
03:24the Harmouth Strait, Bab el-Mendeb,
03:27the Suez Canal, and Gibraltar,
03:30a pathway linking Asia, the Middle East,
03:34Africa, Europe, and the United States.
03:36And we all know that the importance of our shared space
03:40is only destined to increase,
03:44and that we need a more structured dialogue
03:48leading to enhanced cooperation
03:50if we want all of us to take full advantage
03:53of the opportunities offered by our geopolitical centrality.
03:57For this reason, if you like the idea,
04:02I would like to work with you on a GCC Med Summit
04:08that obviously I am ready to host in Italy,
04:12a nation historically and geographically
04:16at the core of these spaces,
04:17to create this new and ambitious format of dialogue
04:21between Gulf and Mediterranean nations,
04:25a format that does not mean to compete
04:28with other international initiatives or fora
04:31and does not work as an alternative to them,
04:35but one that knows how to work on complementarities,
04:39synergies, and mutual strengths.
04:43Our goal must be building a common operational platform
04:47focusing on the challenges
04:49in which we can make a difference together.
04:52And the first of these challenges
04:55lies in developing economic interconnections,
04:59increasingly decisive in the globalized
05:01and highly innovative economic landscape
05:05we are experiencing.
05:07I'm thinking of the India-Middle East corridor,
05:11the infrastructure and economic project
05:13to connect major port cities in India,
05:17the Middle East, and Europe,
05:19enabling interconnection with the United States.
05:21This initiative would allow our economies
05:25and businesses to unleash enormous potential.
05:29And in it, Italy intends to play a leading role,
05:34for example, counting on a crucial hub
05:35such as Trieste,
05:37the northernmost port in the Mediterranean
05:41and the historic maritime gate to the Balkans
05:44and the rest of Central and Eastern Europe.
05:48Equally strategic is the digital connection domain.
05:51At a time when data are increasingly becoming
05:55the new fuel of our societies,
05:58one of the main projects involving us
06:01is the construction of the Blue Raman Cable,
06:05the maritime backbone to connect Europe to India
06:08through Italy, the Mediterranean,
06:11and the Arabian Peninsula,
06:13an infrastructure we deem essential
06:15for meeting the growing demand for connectivity
06:17also linked to AI overwhelming development.
06:20But we also aim to lay the foundations
06:24of a new energy diplomacy
06:26to multiply the opportunities for cooperation
06:30between Europe, Africa, Italy, and the Gulf
06:32and offer decisive opportunities
06:35for the transition's success.
06:37Technological neutrality is the principle
06:41that must shape our thinking
06:43to build a mix of all the technologies available
06:47and those addressed by research and innovation.
06:51On this matter, my idea is that the approach
06:54has to be more pragmatic and less ideological.
06:59Italy can and will be for the Gulf
07:01the gateway to Europe giving even stronger momentum
07:05to economic cooperation that is now worth
07:08$35 billion a year
07:12but does not express the true potential
07:15of our relation.
07:17There is great scope for development
07:20drawing on a typical feature
07:23of our way of conceiving partnership
07:26with other nations.
07:28The Italian system does not just export
07:32off-the-shelf products
07:33but provides its partners
07:36and their growth and development plans
07:38with financial instruments,
07:41know-how, industrial skills,
07:43and technological capabilities
07:45in the most advanced sector
07:47because the Italian system
07:48understands the concept of cooperation
07:51as per its original meaning.
07:54The word cooperation, let's go to the source,
07:59originates from the Latin cooperare
08:01which literally means to work with.
08:06True cooperation does not involve
08:08an active and a passive subject,
08:11one who buys and one who sells, for example.
08:14It always implies something built together,
08:18something new that will arise
08:21from such joint work.
08:22Through this enhanced cooperation
08:25that I want to build,
08:27Italy, Europe, the Gulf nations,
08:29but also North Africa and the Middle East
08:31can therefore work together
08:33for giving birth to something new
08:34in order to build an increasingly secure,
08:37stable, and prosperous geopolitical space.
08:40This is even more important
08:42in the Gulf area
08:43which guards the routes
08:46that are crucial and exposed to risks
08:48and tensions originating
08:50from Middle East instability.
08:53Personally,
08:54I believe three priority paths
08:57must be traveled
08:57to achieve stability
08:59in your region and ours.
09:02The first path goes through the Middle East,
09:05especially now that the plan
09:07presented by President Trump
09:08offers a real possibility
09:10to build a stable and lasting framework
09:12of peace and security.
09:14We know well
09:15how fragile the truth is
09:18and how much work
09:19will be taken
09:20to turn this opportunity
09:21into a long-term reality.
09:25But we are all committed
09:26to supporting and nurturing
09:28the unity of purpose
09:30proved by the international community
09:33in Sharm el-Shek,
09:35attaining an uncommon level
09:36of sharing and participation.
09:39Italy is doing its own part,
09:41both by training
09:43the Palestinian security forces
09:44and providing the head package
09:46for the reconstruction conference.
09:48Yet I remain convinced
09:50that to ensure
09:51the Middle East security
09:52and stability it deserves,
09:54we must work to attain
09:56the two-state structural solution.
09:59And we all know
09:59this requires Israel's recognition
10:02of the Palestinians' right
10:03to have their own state
10:05and the definitive recognition
10:07of the state of Israel's right
10:09to existence and security.
10:11I'm fully aware
10:12this is not an easy path,
10:14yet when I look
10:16at the leaders
10:16around this table,
10:18I'm convinced
10:19we all want the same thing,
10:21a future of peace,
10:23a future of prosperity,
10:24a future of stability,
10:26being able to focus
10:27on exchange
10:28rather than
10:29on humanitarian aid,
10:31on strategy
10:32rather than emergency,
10:34on stability
10:34rather than precariousness.
10:37We all know
10:38this peace proposal
10:39is an opportunity
10:40that may not be replicated,
10:42and this is why Italy
10:43intends to support it firmly.
10:46The second path
10:47goes through Iran.
10:49Iran, as repeatedly stated,
10:52it does not intend
10:53to get nuclear weapon,
10:57and if it is that true,
11:00and I want to believe it is,
11:01reaching a demanding
11:02and credible agreement
11:03as soon as possible
11:04is essential,
11:05with full involvement
11:07of the International
11:08Atomic Energy Agency
11:09to reassure
11:10the international community
11:11of the exclusively
11:13peaceful nature
11:14of Iran's nuclear program.
11:16As in the past,
11:17when we hosted
11:18two negotiating rounds
11:19between Iran
11:20and the United States,
11:22Italy is ready
11:23to offer
11:23any useful contribution
11:25to restarting
11:26a diplomatic process
11:27and working
11:28with everyone,
11:29Iran,
11:30the United States,
11:31the nations present here,
11:32to achieve
11:33this shared goal.
11:35The third path
11:36goes through
11:37countering terrorism
11:39and extremism.
11:40In this,
11:41we must keep working
11:43with all our available tools,
11:45financial, military, judicial.
11:47We have achieved
11:48remarkable results together,
11:50but we are all aware
11:51that we can
11:53and must do much more.
11:55Relations between Europe
11:57and the Gulf nations
11:58are experiencing
12:00a very positive face,
12:02relying on fruitful
12:03political dialogue
12:05and robust trade relations.
12:07This allows us
12:09to speak among us
12:11also about
12:12the growing tensions
12:13in Europe
12:14linked to instances
12:16of Islamic radicalism.
12:18In several European contexts,
12:20we are increasingly
12:21witnessing
12:22the phenomenon
12:23of Islamic separatism,
12:25that is the failure
12:26by some Islamic communities
12:28to recognize
12:28the laws and customs
12:29of European nations.
12:31This triggers tensions
12:33that risk undermining
12:34social cohesion
12:35and fueling hostility
12:37towards Muslim minorities
12:39across Europe.
12:40And working together
12:41is essential
12:42for building
12:43shared paths
12:44to avert
12:45fundamentalist
12:46proselytism in Europe,
12:48enhance fruitful forms
12:49of dialogue
12:50and discussion
12:51between different identities
12:52and concretely support
12:54integration paths.
12:56But a starting assumption
12:57must be the same
12:58for all of us.
12:59When you choose
13:00to live in a foreign nation,
13:01you must accept
13:02its law,
13:03culture,
13:03and tradition.
13:04For cohabitation
13:05is possible.
13:07And I reiterate it here
13:08in a nation
13:09that has been
13:10pioneer
13:10of interfaith dialogue
13:12and respect for other
13:13thanks to King Hamad.
13:15I wish to recall
13:16and share with you
13:17an enlightened passage
13:19from the Kingdoms
13:20of Bahrain's declaration.
13:22We commit to working
13:24for a world
13:24where people
13:25of sincere belief
13:27join together
13:28to reject
13:29that which divides us
13:31and concentrate instead
13:33on celebrating
13:34and expanding
13:35on what which unites us.
13:37And obviously,
13:39dialogue must not aim
13:41at homologation
13:42or at canceling differences.
13:45Far from it.
13:47Dialogue must instead
13:48help get to know
13:49each other
13:50to fully respect
13:51each other.
13:52Again,
13:54the Italian for respect
13:55derives from
13:57the Latin
13:58respicere,
14:00which means
14:00to look in depth.
14:03Respect assumes
14:04understanding
14:05history,
14:06culture,
14:07roots,
14:08and its precondition
14:09lies in the awareness
14:10and pride
14:11of own identity
14:13because only strong
14:15identities
14:15do not fear
14:17confrontation.
14:17This is a precondition
14:20for jointly defending
14:21inevitable assumption
14:22of any safe
14:23and prosperous society,
14:25such as religious freedom
14:26and people's rights.
14:28Your Majesties,
14:30Royal Highnesses,
14:31dear friends,
14:31in working on this
14:34meeting,
14:35I discovered
14:35one of the most
14:36fascinating symbols
14:38of this land,
14:40the Shajaratu
14:41Hel Hayetun,
14:42the tree of life,
14:44the magnificent
14:45acacia tree
14:46that has lived
14:47and thrived
14:48in the Bahá'íreni
14:49desert for 100 years.
14:52It is a symbol
14:53of the impossible
14:54that becomes possible,
14:56like cooperation
14:57between us,
14:58like friendship
14:59between us,
15:01which some
15:01would like
15:02to make impossible
15:03but which instead
15:04can richly flourish
15:06for a long time ahead.
15:08This is my personal wish
15:10and this is also
15:11the reason why
15:11I'm so proud
15:12to be here.
15:13Shukran.
15:14Thank you very much.
15:14Thank you very much.
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