The Ministerial will take place in conjunction with the Mediterranean Dialogues in Rome. It is no coincidence that these two events are taking place at the same time, given that the Mediterranean is at the center of global foreign policy dynamics, today more than ever.

Promoting the stability in the Middle East has been an utmost priority of the Italian G7 Presidency. Last October, Prime Minister Meloni travelled to Lebanon and Jordan, while in my capacity as Minister of Foreign Affairs I carried out a mission in Israel and Palestine. Our priorities are clear: reach a cease-fire in Gaza and Lebanon; achieve the release of all hostages; facilitate access and delivery of humanitarian aid; avoid the widening of the conflict. Most importantly, we are fully engaged in promoting a credible political process for the lasting stability of the region based on the “Two-state solution”.

We believe that no durable and credible political solution to the crisis in the Middle East can be achieved without the involvement of key actors in the region. In this spirit, partners from the Mediterranean and the Gulf, including Algeria, Tunisia, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, attended the G7 Apulia Summit. In addition, at the G7 Development Ministerial in Pescara, in October, I promoted a humanitarian conference attended by representatives from Lebanon, Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

Further discussions will now take place at the next G7 Foreign Minister Meeting in Fiuggi-Anagni, where I have invited also colleagues from several Arab Countries to join, including Egypt. I hope that through our dialogue we will be able to identify solutions to relaunch the political process and to focus on concrete initiatives to alleviate the suffering of the victims of the conflict.

In this regard, the “Food for Gaza” initiative that Italy launched in the past months has been a positive example of partnership between international organizations and the private and the public sectors to provide humanitarian assistance. Food for Gaza is a model we intend to enhance also in view of the reconstruction process - and perhaps replicate in the future. Italy and Egypt have worked together very closely since the outbreak of the war in Gaza in order to provide humanitarian assistance to the many people in need. We thank the Egyptian Government for its invaluable support and collaboration allowing us to bring into Gaza much needed humanitarian aid and to evacuate and care for many wounded Palestinians, especially children, on our military hospital ship “Vulcano” and later in many Italian hospitals including the “Umberto I” in Cairo.

We must continue and strengthen our efforts to find a sustainable solution to the humanitarian needs of the Palestinian population. This is why I strongly support the Egyptian initiative to convene the Humanitarian Conference on Gaza to be held in Cairo on December 2nd. Addressing the needs of the Palestinian population is and remains a collective effort that the entire International Community must support through all possible means.

In Fiuggi-Anagni and during the Mediterranean Dialogues in Rome, we will also devote a great deal of attention to the situation in the Red Sea, a crucial geopolitical area for our economies. Fifteen percent of global trade in goods pass through the Red Sea. How tensions affect trade routes to the Mediterranean remain a central topic in our discussions, as at the G7 Trade Ministerial in Reggio Calabria.

I trust that the G7 Foreign Ministerial in Fiuggi – Anagni will help in fostering peace and stability in the wide Mediterranean area. Italy is ready to play its part also in the future, especially in the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip and Lebanon, where we have been contributing over the past few years to regional security and stability through the presence of our UNIFIL military.

* Antonio Tajani is Deputy Prime Minister of Italy and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation