Minister Luigi Di Mayo will visit Israel today • In an interview with "Israel Today" before arriving in Israel, he said: "Vaccination promotion is a global asset, Israel and Italy can contribute a lot"
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Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Mayo arrives in Israel today (Thursday) for a two-day visit.
On days like theirs visits at this level of foreign representatives do not cross the threshold of consciousness.
In the days of Corona, however, physical encounters of government ministers are also uncommon.
Therefore, the arrival of Di Mayo raises a blush in the cheeks of Israeli diplomats, including Israel's ambassador to Rome, Dr. Dror Eder, who will accompany the guest.
In an interview before arriving in Israel, Di Mayo, a former leader of the Five Star Party in Italy, says that he is coming to Israel "at a historic point in time."
He is referring to the Avraham agreements and the normalization of relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, to Bahrain and now also to Sudan. "
What is the state of dealing with the epidemic in Italy and what can be expected in the short and long term? Israel and Italy are cooperating on the issue. Will the collaboration lead to a vaccine?
"The economic and social impact of the epidemic has clearly shown that no country today can cope alone. Coordinated initiatives between EU companies, such as the Inclusive Vaccine Alliance that I personally promoted since the outbreak of the epidemic, can greatly advance vaccine research, seeing it as a global public asset. Make an important contribution, and I am sure that existing partners, such as the agreement between the Cargie Hospital in Florence, the Toscana Life Science Foundation and the Israeli Biological Institute, can yield positive results. The bilateral coordination team with Prof. Richardi and Prof. Shalmon has an important role to play. "A very effective tool for exchanging information and promoting best practices."
Israel recently announced three peace agreements with Arab countries. These agreements do not involve territorial concessions in Judea and Samaria, and in fact circumvent the Palestinian issue. In light of the historic breakthrough, should not Europe also re-examine its position on the conflict and update it?
"As mentioned, Italy welcomed the start of normalization with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan, as the continued rapprochement between the Arab world and Israel will contribute to stability in the region and recognition of Israel's right to exist in security. I will mention this is a fundamental point in our Middle East policy. In this positive process, this is no detour to the Palestinian question, on the contrary.
"In my opinion, normalization will contribute to the creation of conditions for stability, dialogue and development for all parties, which may lead to the initiation of direct negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians towards a just, sustainable and feasible two-state solution.
For Europe, the first priority is to work to enable a renewed dialogue, which Israelis and Palestinians will have to approach out of a realistic approach, a constructive spirit and a willingness to compromise.
We strive for a solution that is just and acceptable to all parties, for the good of the Israelis, the Palestinians and the entire international community. "
In light of the new agreements, do you agree that the Palestinian issue is not as important as it has been in the past?
"I repeat, the Palestinian issue is part of the Middle East peace equation. Resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was and still is one of the conditions that will ensure stability and prosperity for the region."
Why is your party opposed to the East-Med project to lay a gas pipeline between Israel, Cyprus and Italy, and from there to the rest of Europe? Is there no political and economic benefit to Italy in the initiative?
"I believe that the East-Med project can contribute to the diversification of energy sources in Europe, which is why Italy supported it at EU level. At the same time, we must remember that this is a medium-term project with variables related to the amount of resources." Another option is to develop the liquefied natural gas market. In this context, we attach paramount importance to cooperation within the Eastern Mediterranean Gas Forum, of which Italy and Israel are co-founders.
In our opinion, this is the appropriate context for agreeing on cooperation to make the best use of the region's resources and for the benefit of all parties. "
We have recently seen Turkish aggression in the Mediterranean. How does Italy relate to this? Isn't it time to put Erdogan in his place?
"To resolve tensions in the eastern Mediterranean requires deepening, patience and a strategic vision. Turkey, Greece and Cyprus need to start dialogue in good faith to address the roots of the problems between them: first, marking the maritime border between Greece and Turkey, but also Cyprus. The island but also the stability of the whole region. This requires signs of openness, not provocations or unilateral measures. This is a message we clearly conveyed to Turkey. I talked about it with my colleagues Kabuzoglu when he visited Rome less than a month ago.
"Europe also has a role to play. We must show determination in the face of provocations and solidarity with the affected EU members, but we must also recognize that Turkey is a partner to work with, and to achieve this we must offer a positive agenda, while acknowledging Turkey's success. "In this context, I mean that President Erdogan's personal attacks against President Macron and against Germany are unacceptable to me. It is clear that these attacks do not lead in the right direction, and moreover, they make unacceptable use of the Holocaust, a use I strongly condemn."
