INTERVIEW FEDERICA CATTOI, FIRST SECRETARY, HEAD OF THE CONSULATE, HEAD OF THE MEDIA, POLITICAL AFFAIRS OFFICER, EMBASSY OF ITALY TO SERBIA
Progress Eagerly
AWAITED BY ALL Serbia needs steady progress in the area of the rule of law, both in the interest of its citizens and as a standard asset required to become a full EU member state. If the necessary requirements continue to be fulfilled, I am positive that 2021 will be a better year for Serbia
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s she comes to the end of her mandate in Serbia, we asked Federica Cattoi, First Secretary and Head of the Consulate, Head of the Media, and Political Affairs Officer at the Embassy of Italy in Belgrade, how she perceives relations between Serbia and Italy. Her answer can be summed up in one sentence: there is an “osmotic process of friendship” in politics, culture and emergency services between the two countries, insists our interlocutor.
One of the last meetings you had in Serbia was with the Parliamentary Friendship Group with Italy. How much can such groups contribute to fostering friendship between the two countries? - It was an honour to take part in that meeting, as well as many others over these past three and a half years that I’ve spent in Serbia. Participating in a session with the Parliamentary Friendship Group was a chance to get to the heart of democracy in this country, and to feel the connection with Italy from the inside of the National Assembly. Parliamentary diplomacy consists of a real modality of relations between countries, as meetings between bodies elected by their respective peoples. As for Italy and Serbia, I recall that over the last few years several members of the Italian Parliament have visited the Serbian Assembly under various circumstances, and during all those times I witnessed a tremendously vibrant environment of closeness, as well as the development of reciprocal opportunities. One of the messages you’ve had for Serbian MPs was that, despite Serbia not having
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Business Partner - Italy 2021
