The Diplomatic Institute of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted Ambassador of Italy to Qatar, Guido De Sanctis, to talk about Italian-Qatari relations in the presence of a large number of diplomats and officials of the Ministry.
The Ambassador underlined Italian-Qatari historical ties which began in the early seventies of the last century when Italy voted in favour of Qatar's accession to the United Nations, adding that since then the relationship between the two countries continued through constant communication with the Italian embassy in Kuwait until the official opening of the Italian embassy in Qatar in 1992.
The Ambassador said that he has been working in Qatar for three years, and at the end of this year he will return to Rome after 25 years in diplomatic work within Italy and abroad.
The Italian Ambassador said there are about 4 million Italian living abroad, pointing to the presence of Italian labour in GCC countries in general and Qatar in particular, where there are about 2,100 Italians.
He also said that Qatar in recent years has become a favorite destination of Italians due to the development which provides a lot of job opportunities for them, as well as the good reputation enjoyed by Qatar that encourages foreigners to work here.
With regard to the areas of cooperation between the two countries, the Ambassador said that his country's relationship with Qatar is extensive in multiple fields, adding that the most prominent features of this relationship on the economic side is the opening of an Italian trade office in Qatar for the development of small and medium enterprises.
Qatar is experiencing an industrial transformation period as it seeks through its national vision for economic diversification, De Sanctis said, stressing Italy's willingness to provide support as it is able to play an important role in this economic transformation.
The Ambassador referred to the Italian cooperation with Russia in this area as it, thanks to the Italian expertise in the industrial field, was able to manufacture and has a strong economy.
Regarding the cooperation in the military field, De Sanctis praised the defence agreement signed between the two countries in 2010.
