Today in Rome, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the PMR Vitaly Ignatiev held a press conference for Italian media, dedicated to the results of his visit to the Italian capital. The event at the headquarter of the House of Friendship Italy-Pridnestrovie was attended by correspondents of La Repubblica, Il Manifesto and Contropiano, news agencies Sputnik Italia and Eurasia News, as well as other media.
Talking to the media representatives, Vitaly Ignatiev spoke about bilateral contacts that took place within the framework of the visit of the Pridnestrovian delegation, mentioning, among others, meetings with the counselor of the Rome City Council Rosario Rino Fabiano, businessman Pinot Arletto, as well as some Italian sports, public and cultural figures.
Particular attention was also paid to certain aspects of the foreign policy situation around the PMR and prospects for the Italian-Pridnestrovian cooperation in the field of trade and tourism.
During the conversation, the Foreign Minister emphasized stable ties between Italy and Pridnestrovie in the trade and industrial sphere. At the same time, according to him, the potential for developing bilateral cooperation is far from being realized in full.
“This visit is intended to establish communication with friendly partners of Pridnestrovie in Italy, to create conditions for expanding channels of economic and socio-cultural cooperation. It would be useful to complement existing contacts at the business level with broad intercultural dialogue and humanitarian interaction. Therefore, I am very glad that within the framework of this visit we are opening the House of Friendship Italy-Pridnestrovie, which I hope will be the first step in this direction,” the diplomat said.
Speaking about the prospects for deepening bilateral economic ties, Vitaly Ignatiev focused on open and export oriented Pridnestrovian economy, noting wide range of industrial products produced in the Republic. “This is a consumer goods industry, steel works, cement, industrial equipment, as well as a number of unique industries, such as production of sturgeon roe. Pridnestrovian goods are competitive, European markets and states are interested in them. Therefore, I believe that it is possible to find the best forms of cooperation, whether it be organization of joint forums or bilateral visits of delegations, for the further development of business contacts that would benefit both Italy and Pridnestrovie,” the diplomat stressed.
Answering the question about potential of the PMR in the sphere of tourism, the Head of the Foreign Ministry noted that numerous myths about the Republic in the Western media sphere hinder full realization of the PMR potential. “This is part of the information war that has been waged against the PMR for over 27 years. For its part, Pridnestrovie has always been open to visitors, and today tourists flow to the Republic is constantly growing. We really hope that our Italian friends will have an opportunity to visit the PMR and personally communicate with the Pridnestrovians. In my opinion, this is the best vaccination against any information campaigns,” the Minister concluded.
