00:00I'm very sorry I cannot be with you today in New York, but I wanted to send you my warm
00:03greetings and best wishes for this next stage of the initiative launched by Antena Group at the Atlantic Council to
00:10strengthen cooperation between Europe and the Gulf.
00:12I believe the situation we face with the Strait of Hormuz still blocked and the new front of instability at
00:19Bab el-Mandeb makes it clear that Europe and the Gulf have more interests in common than we have traditionally
00:25assumed.
00:26Our prosperity depends on lasting peace, open trade, secure connections and shared rules, starting with freedom of navigation without tolls
00:35or indiscriminatory restrictions.
00:37This is why we must work even more closely together today and in the years ahead.
00:43There is a goal that Italian government has pursued since taking office, making significant milestones along the way.
00:50I'm thinking of Italy's participation as guests of honor at the Gulf Corporation Council Summit, the Europe-Gulf Forum in
00:59Costa Navarino, the Future Investment Initiative Ostendrome last June and many other opportunities for dialogue and cooperation.
01:06I believe the time has come to steer our investments towards a shared goal, making it harder to strike at
01:15us and more costly to divide us.
01:17Connecting our markets, establishing alternative routes, strengthening infrastructures and jointly developing technologies and defense capabilities all serve precisely this purpose.
01:29This work must begin immediately, even as we seek, with a persistence and determination, a lasting solution to the current
01:37crisis.
01:38I hope this meeting will provide further confirmation that Europe and the Gulf are ready to take greater responsibility for
01:46the security, development and well-being of our peoples.
01:49You, obviously, can always count on me along this path.
01:53Thank you and I wish you fruitful discussion.
