April 6, 2005
Initial meeting of the Italo-Venezuelan Council: five work groups set up

(Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Italy) - "Cooperation between Italy and Venezuela is intensifying. In fact, the Italo-Venezuelan Council for cooperation in the sectors of economy, industry, finance, infrastructure and development met for the first time today at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and set up a series of work groups, thus giving a concrete context to the two countries' bilateral relations.

The Council sessions were opened by Minister Gianfranco Fini, and participants included Undersecretary for Foreign Affairs with the delegation for the Countries of Latin America Giampaolo Bettamio and Venezuelan Minister for Planning and Development Jorge Giordani.

At the meeting's conclusion Undersecretary Bettamio explained that five work groups that had been set up would be operative by the end of the month and are to be concerned with as many sectors. The first will focus on bilateral trade and cooperation, the second on energy, the third infrastructure, the fourth tourism and the fifth is to be made up of a committee of business persons who will examine the sectors particularly relevant to the Venezuelan economy.

The Undersecretary also stressed that the Italo-Venezuelan Council is a response to the need to focus the activities of economic operators through efforts aimed at identifying the precise sectors in which Italian and Venezuelan enterprises can be engaged in concrete initiatives together. Bettamio pointed out that tourism is a sector of particular interest for Venezuela, which is working on boosting the number of tourists headed for that country.