Your Highness,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is with renewed feelings of friendship that I have the pleasure of greeting you and your retinue at the Quirinale Palace. It is a pleasure to see you again.
Your visit takes on profound meaning as it is the first State Visit to Italy by a President of the United Arab Emirates and it greatly pleases me.
The relationships between the Italian people and the civilizations along the shores of the Arabian Gulf are rooted in a rich and common past.
Mutual influences and commercial and cultural exchanges have translated into familiarity, understanding and respect.
Traces of these age-old enrichments can be seen in our culture, architecture, language, science and even in our culinary tradition.
First and foremost in Sicily where, at the entrance of the Cathedral of Palermo – my city of birth – a column bears the etching of a surah of the Quran. Nearby, the Zisa Palace reminds us of the Arab history of Sicily, starting from its very name: Al Azizah: the splendid.
Across the centuries, the long history of voyages and travellers recorded the presence of civilizations from our own peninsula in the Arab Peninsula and in the lands that now form the United Arab Emirates.
Emirati locations such as Sir Bani Yas, Dubai and Sharjah were first mentioned in a book, “Viaggio nelle Indie Orientali”, published in 1590 by the Venice-born writer Gasparo Balbi.
We find a fine testimony of this rich and articulate inter-cultural dialogue in the exhibition “Da Sharjah a Roma, lungo la via delle spezie” (“From Sharjah to Rome along the Spice Route”) now hosted at the Colosseum Archaeological Park.
Jewels, sculptures, and amphorae for spices and wine narrate how our peoples established sound and fruitful ties over the centuries.
Now as in the past, a peaceful and industrious coexistence is what unites our peoples.
It is responsibility for the future of Humankind that underlies our common sensitivity that drives us to work to achieve international peace and understanding.
One example of this is the Abrahamitic Family House in Abu Dhabi which hosts, in a single location, a church, a mosque and a synagogue, thus turning it into a monument of inter-cultural and inter-religious dialogue.
An effort and a principle that inspired the Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together that was signed in 2019 at your presence, Your Highness, by Pope Frances and the Grand Imam of Al Azhar, Ahmad Al Tayyeb.
Your Highness,
The Mediterranean and the Middle Eastern regions are now going through a period of heightened instability and deep suffering. In these difficult times, the United Arab Emirates and the Italian Republic have worked together to promote peace.
We have firmly condemned the inhuman and vile terrorist attack on the 7th of October by Hamas, which renews its brutality through the cruel show staged for the handover of surviving hostages and the bodies of those killed. In these last few months, we have made every possible effort to put an end to the violent conflict that ensued and that has seriously distressed civilians. Right now, we can but commit to avoiding the resumption of warfare, keeping open the talks so painfully established during these past few months and crushing the seeds of resentment.
The resumption of hostilities heralds neither security for the future of Israel and even less solutions for the Palestinian people, who suffer dramatic conditions in Gaza.
We must obstinately repeat that pursuing the Two People-Two States perspective remains the only one capable of guaranteeing concerted and sustainable peace.
Allow me to express my great appreciation for the extraordinary humanitarian aid that the United Arab Emirates provided to the people of Gaza.
The commitment to save human lives and provide first aid to the wounded once again saw us proudly working side by side.
Your Highness,
Alongside a shared sensitivity for the theme of peace and cooperation, our Countries also have a common natural vocation for commercial exchanges and investment opportunities. I am happy to note that our bilateral cooperation has considerably increased during these past few years.
Numerous Italian companies are operating in the United Arab Emirates and with them comes a growing Italian community that lives in the Emirates’ welcoming environment.
Italy welcomes the development of ideas and investment opportunities, which will be duly analysed in the business forum scheduled for tomorrow.
Surely, alongside traditional sectors, focus shall also be placed on spearheading and most forward-looking projects.
International challenges require the capacity to tackle and design the energy transition process, in view of which we are already collaborating on ambitious initiatives in our growing awareness that it is necessary in order to guarantee the future of the next generations which, for it to be prosperous, will need to be sustainable.
With this awareness, we cooperated with your Country in achieving the agreement on climate change at the Cop28 in Dubai which, for the first time, explicitly refers to the need to expedite a transition from fossil fuels.
The work agenda between the United Arab Emirates and Italy is full of opportunities.
I am referring to development in the African continent, which also has a great many implications on its stability and on the life of the international community. This is the aim of the Piano Mattei launched by the Italian Government. I am also thinking of the space and artificial intelligence sectors.
In such a confusing and frenzied phase of life in the international scenario, Abu Dhabi and Rome feel the responsibility of contributing to giving prevalence to a vision focused on the value of dialogue, of balanced development and of building positive inter-State relations.
Your Highness,
While nurturing this hope, I am happy to extend to you and your delegation a heart-felt welcome to Italy and to renew to our friends the Emiratis our very best wishes of prosperity and peace.
Thank you. Shukran.
