Category Archives: United Nations

The Government’s views on the imposition of an embargo on countries allegedly involved in arms trafficking with ISIL/Daesh and on common actions to counter terrorism

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In the last quarter of 2015 the Government reported twice before the Chamber of Deputies on its arms sales policy to certain Middle East countries allegedly involved in illicit arms trafficking with ISIL/Daesh. The Government also explained which measures and actions Italy has undertaken in the fight against ISIL and foreign terrorist fighters. The most salient points from the two speeches follow:

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Statement of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Gentiloni, on Freedom of Expression

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CHAMBER OF DEPUTIES, XVII LEGISLATURE, 339th MEETING, 26 NOVEMBER 2014.

On 26 November 2014, during a question time at the Chamber of Deputies, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Paolo Gentiloni Silveri, answered a parliamentary question by MP Gianluca Pini on Italy’s abstention during the voting of the UN General Assembly Resolution on the inadmissibility of certain practices related to the  Glorification of Nazism. The MP highlighted that in the case of the resolution – which was voted on 21 November 2014 – 115 were the favourable votes, 55 the abstentions (including Italy as well as all the EU member States) and 3 the contrary votes (Canada, the United States and Ukraine). He expressed astonishment at the decision of Italy to abstain, underlining that his country was not obliged to conform to the decisions of the other European countries.

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Statement by the Permanent Representative of Italy to the Conference on Disarmament at the Debate of the First Committee of the UN General Assembly

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NEW YORK, 69th SESSION OF THE UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY, FIRST COMMITTEE, GENERAL DEBATE, 13 OCTOBER 2014.

On 13 October 2014, during the general debate in the First Committee of the UN General Assembly, Italy’s Permanent Representative to the Conference on Disarmament, Amb. Vinicio Mati, expressed the position of Italy on disarmament and other related matters. First off, after declaring that Italy aligned itself with the statement made by the European Union, Mr Mati made some introductory remarks on the importance of a multilateral approach to the issue. He said:

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Italy’s Statement at the Debate on Social Development in the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly

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NEW YORK, 69th SESSION OF THE UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY, THIRD COMMITTEE, FIRST MEETING ON ITEM 26 (SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT), 7 OCTOBER 2014.

On 7 October 2014, during the debate in the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly, Italy’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Lambertini, expressed the position of Italy on social development. After declaring that Italy aligned itself with the statement made by the European Union, Mr Lambertini addressed the issues of persons with disabilities, youth empowerment, rights of the elderly, gender equality, and role of families, including non-traditional couples, in the development process. He said:

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A Speech of the Italian Prime Minister, Mr Matteo Renzi, on the Death Penalty

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UN MEETING “MOVING AWAY FROM THE DEATH PENALTY: NATIONAL LEADERSHIP”, NEW YORK, 25 SEPTEMBER 2014.

On 25 September 2014, at a High-level event of the 69th Session of the UN General Assembly organized by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights together with Italy and other three States, the Italian Prime Minister, Mr Matteo Renzi, delivered a speech on the death penalty and on the need to support a moratorium to stop it and eventually to abolish it. After mentioning Italy’s leading role in the abolitionist campaign (with the Grand Duke of Tuscany, Leopold II, having renounced to capital punishment already in 1786), he said that Italians

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Intervention of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Federica Mogherini, at the event “Ending child marriage: towards a more gender equitable world”

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NEW YORK, 22 SEPTEMBER 2014

On 22 September 2014, on the sidelines of the 69th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Italy co-organised the event “Ending child marriage: towards a more gender equitable world”. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Federica Mogherini, gave a speech in which she highlighted the importance of the direct involvement and ownership of countries affected, in particular in matters of education, in order to progressively eradicate this practice. She said:

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Intervention of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Federica Mogherini, at the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC)

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SANTIAGO (CHILE), ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMISSION FOR LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN, 5 AUGUST 2014.

On 5 August 2014, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Federica Mogherini, gave a keynote speech at the headquarters of the Economic and Social Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). In her intervention, the Minister focused on Europe’s past and future ties to Latin America, and underlined the capital importance of regionalism as a means to pursue peace and prosperity. 

She said:

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A Speech by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Federica Mogherini, on the Recent Developments of the Situation in the Gaza Strip

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CHAMBER OF DEPUTIES, XVII LEGISLATURE, 274th MEETING, 29 JULY 2014.

On 29 July 2014, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Federica Mogherini, delivered a speech before the plenary session of the Chamber of Deputies of the Italian Parliament on the conflict between Hamas and Israel. After expressing sorrow, on behalf of the Italian Government and people, for the casualties suffered on both sides, she highlighted the complexity of the conflict. Thus, to avoid any oversimplification, she briefly illustrated the political context of the whole region, showing how much the situations of Syria, Iraq, Libya, Lebanon and Jordan are interrelated. Then, referring to the end of the “Skyes-Picot order”, she called all the Middle-Eastern actors to assume direct and shared responsibility in the regional politics, together with Italy and Europe. Pointing out that the conflict cannot be examined through biased eyes, and that the aspirations of both Israelis and Palestinians – respectively, to live in peace and security and to have a sovereign State – are legitimate, she added:

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A Statement at the Human Rights Council on Behalf of the EU on the Situation in the Gaza Strip

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HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL, 21st SPECIAL SESSION, HUMAN RIGHTS SITUATION IN THE OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY, INCLUDING EAST JERUSALEM, 23 JULY 2014.

On 23 July 2014, the Permanent Representative of Italy at the Human Rights Council, Amb. Maurizio Enrico Serra, expressed the position of the EU with respect to the Human Rights situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. The statement took place in the context of a debate on Israel’s military operation ‘Protective Edge’, which has started on 7 July 2014 in the Gaza Strip, and on the escalation of rocket fire against Israel. At the outset, Amb. Serra specified that the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Iceland, Serbia, Albania and Liechtenstein aligned themselves with his statement. 

He then stated: 

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A Statement of Italy on the Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases

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GENERAL ASSEMBLY, 68th SESSION, HIGH LEVEL MEETING ON THE COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW AND ASSESSMENT OF THE PROGRESS ACHIEVED IN THE PREVENTION AND CONTROL OF NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES, 10 JULY 2014.

On 10 July, Ms. Sabrina De Camillis, of the Italian Permanent Mission to the United Nations, took part in a high-level meeting aimed at assessing the achievements in the fight against non-communicable diseases (NCDs). She underlined that Italy was the first European country to enact a rule prohibiting smoking in enclosed workplaces and public places, as well as a country where selling tobacco and alcoholics to minors is forbidden. Highlighting the fact that the fight against NCDs passes through the promotion of a healthy lifestyle rather than through thoughtless food-labelling, she said:

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