Category Archives: Italy

Festa della Repubblica in Filadelfia – Console Generale Luigi Scotto nominato Ambasciatore d’Italia in Tanzania

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Nella prestigiosa cornice del museo storico di Filadelfia si e’ celebrata la tradizionale Festa Nazionale della Republica Italiana. Durante la prima parte della serata, dedicata ai discorsi ufficiali, sia il Console che il vice sindaco Michael Diberardinis hanno sottolineato i rapporti di particolare amicizia tra Stati Uniti e Italia ed in particolare tra lo stato di Pennslvania e il nostro paese.

Luigi Scotto, Gilberto Idonea

Luigi Scotto, Gilberto Idonea

Nella seconda parte della serata la cultura Italiana e stata celebrata con la patecipazione, tra gli altri dell sassofonista Francesco Cafiso e dei cantanti Ragusani Rachele Amenta e Lorenzo Licitra.

Ospite d’onore della serata, invitato dal Console Generale, e’ stao l’attore Gilberto Idonea che dopo la sua esibizione e’ stato insignito di un premio come “Ambasciatore della Coltura Italaina e in Particolare Siciliana nel Mondo”.

Nel consegnarli il premio e riferendosi alla sua recente nomina ad Ambasciatore d’Italia in Tanzania, il Console Generale Luigi Scotto ha voluto enfatizzare come il premio sia passato da un ambasciatore “in pectore” ad un “ambasciatore” che gia’ venti anni fa’, proprio a Filadelfia, debuttava dai confini nationali e cominciava il suo “peregrinare” che lo ha portato asd incontrare le comunita Italiane sparse nel mondo.

 

Statement by Secretary of State John Kerry On the Occasion of Italy’s Republic Day

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I congratulate the people of Italy as they celebrate Republic Day this June 2.

Following years of struggle, the Italian people in 1946 made an historic choice that set their country on the path to becoming the vibrant democracy it is today. Commemorations such as this provide an opportunity to reflect upon the fundamental values our two countries share. I have a particular admiration and affection for

Secretary John Kerry

Secretary John Kerry

the Italian experience since my own personal narrative is interwoven with many visits to Italy, and many Italian friends. I witnessed firsthand the effects of the Italian economic miracle of the 1950’s which so clearly exhibited a national strength of character.

The U.S.-Italy alliance is grounded in our shared history and strengthened by the bonds of mutual respect, trust, and affection between our two peoples. These ties have been reaffirmed during my two visits to Italy as Secretary, and by the conversations I have had recently with Prime Minister Enrico Letta and Foreign Minister Emma Bonino.

We are working together to address challenges and attain common goals – promoting peace and stability in the Middle East and North Africa, outlining a path for global economic prosperity that will provide greater opportunity for young people, and protecting the environment for future generations. Our cooperation on security issues remains particularly close, and we are grateful for the hospitality extended to our defense personnel.

It is in the spirit of this enduring partnership and friendship that I extend to all Italians my sincere best wishes on this 67th anniversary of Republic Day

Monumental Statue Boxer at Rest on Special Loan to Metropolitan Museum

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The celebrated over-life-size bronze statue Boxer at Rest—an exceptionally realistic ancient Greek sculpture created between the late fourth and the second century B.C., on loan from the Museo Nazionale Romano – Palazzo Massimo alle Terme—will be shown outside Europe for the first time in The Boxer: An Ancient Masterpiece, a special presentation at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, beginning Saturday, June 1 until July 15, 2013. This extraordinary work will be on view for six weeks only.

The exhibition is organized by The Metropolitan Museum of Art in collaboration with the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali, and the Museo Nazionale Romano – Palazzo Massimo alle Terme. Support is provided by Eni, the main sponsor of the exhibition.

The event is part of 2013 – Year of Italian Culture in the United States, an initiative held under the auspices of the President of the Italian Republic, organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Embassy of Italy in Washington, D.C., with the support of the Corporate Ambassadors Eni and Intesa Sanpaolo.

“We are proud to host The Boxer at Rest, a special loan made possible by the Republic of Italy,” commented Thomas P. Campbell, Director and CEO of the Metropolitan Museum. “More than 2,000 years have passed since this virtuoso work of art was created, yet the powerful realism of its subject continues to captivate viewers today. The privilege to display this marvelous statue in the United States for the first time—and in the context of the Met’s exceptional collection—is a particular honor. We encourage our visitors not to miss this exciting opportunity.”

“Viewing one of the most stunning statues from antiquity is truly a singular opportunity,” said Italy’s Ambassador to the U.S., Claudio Bisogniero. “The Boxer is a masterpiece and its exhibition at the prestigious Met speaks volumes about the success of the Year of Italian Culture in the United States and how the more than 200 programmed events are contributing to expanding and deepening the relations between Italy and the U.S.”

“At Eni, culture means ‘relationships.’ Through culture, in Italy and all over the world, we create links with the territories in which we operate,” stated Paolo Scaroni, Chief Executive Officer, Eni S.p.A. “We are inextricably linked with the U.S.A., both as a country and as a company. This is true historically, due to the role played by America in Europe, and in Italy, in the 20th century. It is also true in terms of our current relationships, with some of the most important organizations in the United States, across the fields of the arts, industry, and research. The Metropolitan Museum of Art is certainly one of the institutions that best reflects the American passion for culture, with its immeasurable artistic endowment spanning every era and every corner of the globe. Through The Boxer: An Ancient Masterpiece, we hope you will feel as if we have brought a piece of Italy within these prestigious walls.”

The statue was excavated in Rome in 1885 on the south slope of the Quirinal Hill near the ancient Baths of Constantine, where it is thought to have been displayed. The sculpture was buried intentionally in late antiquity, possibly to preserve it against the barbarian invasions that ravaged Rome in the fifth century A.D. The broad-shouldered, lanky pugilist is shown seated, resting after a match. His gloves—which are highly detailed—identify him as a boxer.

The athlete’s many head wounds are consistent with ancient boxing techniques, in which the head was the main target. The copper inlays, indicating blood, heighten the effect. The boxer’s right eye is swollen, his nose is broken, and he breathes through his mouth, probably because his nostrils are blocked by blood. His scarred lips are sunken, suggesting missing teeth. The ears, swollen from blows, indicate possible hearing loss. Drops of blood from the wounds on his head have trickled down his right arm and leg. Wear on the foot and hands suggests that they were touched frequently in antiquity, possibly in veneration.

Because the iconography is related to statues of Herakles sculpted by Lysippos in the fourth century B.C., the Boxer at Rest may have been meant to celebrate a mythical—or real—boxer, who was glorified for his endurance and courage. Scholars have long debated the date of the statue, placing it anywhere from the middle of the fourth century B.C. to the middle of the first century B.C. The sculpture is an exceptional work in bronze from the Hellenistic period (323–31 B.C.) and is of outstanding artistry.

Museo Nazionale Romano – Palazzo Massimo alle Terme
The Museo Nazionale Romano was established at the end of the 19th century. It houses countless archaeological finds unearthed in Rome. The need for larger and more fitting locations to host the museum’s collection led to the creation of a group of new museums around the city: Palazzo Massimo alle Terme, Palazzo Altemps, and Crypta Balbi.

Built at the end of the 19th century, the Palazzo Massimo was purchased by the Italian State in 1981 to house the Museo Nazionale Romano’s collection of ancient art, coinage, and jewelry. The evolution of Roman artistic culture from the Late Republican Age through Late Antiquity (second century B.C.–fifth century A.D.) is shown through the beauty and magnificence of the collections on display on four floors. The museum houses celebrated masterpieces of statuary, of which the bronze statue Boxer at Rest is a superb example, as well as polychrome mosaics and precious engraved gems; exceptional frescoes from the Villa of Livia and the Villa della Farnesina; and an impressive numismatic collection.

The exhibition will be featured on the Metropolitan Museum’s website (www.metmuseum.org).


 

Source:  Metropolitan Museum

Sergio Marchionne, General Colin Powell, Gary Sinise, Robert Corrao Honored By Sons of Italy

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It was a very patriotic evening  the Italian American community! Four leaders in business, government and entertainment received awards during the Sons of Italy Foundation (SIF) 25th Silver Anniversary National Education & Leadership Awards(NELA) Gala held on May 23, at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C.
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The honorees were: Chrysler/Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne; General Colin L. Powell, USA (Ret.); actor Gary Sinise and Sky TV’s Robert Corrao.

Sergio Marchionne, chairman & CEO of Chrysler Group LLC and CEO of Fiat S.p.A., received the 2013 SIF Award for Excellence in Global Business. Mr. Marchionne is credited with turning around two major automobile companies: the Italian auto manufacturer, Fiat and the American manufacturer, Chrysler. In addition to his duties as head of the two auto companies, Mr. Marchionne serves on numerous boards of directors, including Fiat Industrial S.p.A. as chairman and the European Automobile Manufacturers Association as president.

Mr. Marchionne is bilingual in Italian and English having been born in Italy and raised in Canada.

In accepting his award, Marchionne stressed the importance of moving from interdependence to integration. “It’s a philosophy that has played a key role in the Fiat-Chrysler partnership from the very beginning. It is a partnership which is driven by people who are willing to listen to each other, who are willing to share experiences, exchange knowledge and ideas, and expand their horizons. And in bringing together the best of our two groups, we’ve embraced both the Italian heritage of Fiat and the distinctly American identity of Chrysler. In many respects it is an idea that is very familiar to the Sons of Italy, which takes pride in an Italian-American culture that draws strength from both traditions,” Marchionne said.

General Colin L. Powell, USA (Ret.) received the 2013 SIF Lifetime Achievement Award for Public Service for his career in the military and diplomatic fields as the 12th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and 65th U.S. Secretary of State. He is also the founding chairman of America’s Promise Alliance, a non-profit that aims to make children and youth a national priority by focusing on lowering the high school dropout rate. Under Gen. Powell’s leadership, the organization has become the nation’s largest multi-sector alliance that focuses on the well-being of young Americans.

The SIF Lifetime Achievement Award for Public Service is presented annually to a person who is not of Italian heritage. The award and the recipient reflect the significance of working together to build a better global community. Past recipients include former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton; U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden; and U.S. Senator Jack Reed.

The son of Jamaican immigrants, Gen. Powell referred to the commonality of the immigrant experience, regardless of the origins, and proudly remarked upon receiving his SIF award, “I always say that I’m an honorary Italian, but tonight I can finally say that I’m more.”

Actor and activist Gary Sinise received the 2013 SIF Award for Courage & Patriotism. As founder of the Gary Sinise Foundation, Mr. Sinise works to assist the men and women who defend our country. His foundation partners with a range of organizations that support U.S. service personnel and veterans, including the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, which builds customized smart homes for severely wounded veterans. A skilled musician and entertainer, Mr. Sinise has also performed for U.S. troops around the globe with his “Lieutenant Dan Band.” Along with NELA Gala emcee Joe Mantegna, Mr. Sinise hosts public television’s annual National Memorial Day Concert.

Accepting his award after a moving introduction by Mantegna, Sinise spoke about what inspires his work. “If by highlighting what I do shines a light on these brave men and women, that’s one way I feel like I can serve.”

Robert F. Corrao is CEO and chairman of the Ski TV Network, a national high definition television network broadcasting via direct satellite and DSL technology to LCD screens at premier ski resorts across the United States, delivering over 60 million impressions through year round TV programming. He received the SIF’s highest honor, its National Education & Leadership Award for 2013. Accepting the award, Corrao proudly spoke of his Italian roots, the importance of education and his long history with the SIF. “All this Italian blood in my heart right now is boiling over.”

During the NELA Gala, the SIF also recognized the men and women who have served or are serving our country. Present at the dinner were U.S. military personnel, active, veteran and wounded warriors. The SIF has long collaborated with and supported the Wounded Warrior Project.

About 1,000 guests attended this year’s NELA black tie gala. Among the special guests were: U.S. Army Chief of Staff General Raymond T. Odierno, Claudio Bisogniero, Italy’s Ambassador to the U.S., Dr. Anthony Fauci, NIH AIDS researcher, Jack Reed, U.S. Senator representing Rhode Island, Doug Flutie, former NFL quarterback, Bob Johnson, BET founder Mack McClarty, former chief of staff to President Bill Clinton, Franco Nuschese of the premier Italian restaurant in Washington, Café Milano, Judge Francis Allegra of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, and the recipients of nine SIF national scholarships

Past attendees have included U.S, presidents; members of the Cabinet and the Congress; and foreign diplomats. Previous SIF honorees include President Bill Clinton; U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia; AIDS researchers Anthony Fauci and Robert Gallo; the late Congresswoman Geraldine Ferraro; former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Peter Pace, USMC (Ret.); and entertainers Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Regis Philbin, Annette Funicello, and Joe Mantegna.

The Sons of Italy Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the Sons of Italy, the nation’s oldest and largest organization for people of Italian heritage. The SIF has contributed to date $125 million to medical research, disaster relief, scholarships, and cultural preservation, along with other special projects. NELA Gala proceeds help fund these philanthropic programs.

Source:  OSIA as revised

Photos by Max Taylor

Works of Italian Abstract Artist Bice Lazzari At National Museum of Women in the Arts

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An exhibition featuring 25 paintings and drawings by Italian abstract artist Bice Lazzari (1900–81), is on view at the National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA) until September 22, 2013.  Discouraged from studying the figure in art school in the 1910s because of her gender, Lazzari became a prominent decorative arts designer, and in the mid-1930s, focused her

Bice Lazzari

Bice Lazzari

attention on abstraction.  She is renowned for her later poetic abstract paintings that resemble graphs, maps, and musical staffs and notes, echoing her lifelong passion for music.

The works on display are drawn from the Archivio Bice Lazzari in Rome, the repository for many of Lazzari’s artworks, writings, designs and other primary resources, as well as from NMWA’s collection. The exibition,  Bice Lazzari: Signature Line,  is presented as part of 2013 – Year of Italian Culture in the United States


Nazionale Italiana Sbandieratori Performs in Washington, D.C.

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The Italian national team of flag  throwers was in Washington on Mother’s day weekend where they demonstrated on Saturday at the Italian Embassy on the occasion of  the European Day

celebration: “Shortcut to Europe: European Union Embassies’ Open House”, and on Sunday at Casa Italiana Cultural Center.  The art of flag throwing dates back to medieval guilds  in Italy.  A guild’s banner or flag was considered a symbol of purity, and as such it was not allowed to touch the ground.

Cinema – La Mano Crea: “Star Wigs” Exhibit at Italian Embassy in Washington, D.C.

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Quale tributo ad un importante elemento della tradizione cinematografica italiana, DressInDreams, di Elisabetta Cantone e Francesca Silvestri, presenta Star Wigs – La Mano Italiana Crea. L’evento farà parte delle celebrazioni del 2013 – Anno della Cultura Italiana negli Stati Uniti, un’iniziativa promossa dal Ministero degli Affari Esteri italiano, che si svolge sotto l’alto patronato del Presidente della Repubblica, Giorgio Napolitano e che annovera più di duecento eventi culturali in più di cinquanta città americane, con il coinvolgimento e la collaborazione di più di ottanta istituzioni ed organizzazioni americane.

Star Wigs presenterà, presso l’Ambasciata d’Italia dal 30 aprile al 6 maggio, 18 parrucche originariamente create per Sophia Loren, Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Leonardo Di Caprio, Robert Duvall, Harvey Keitel, and Gerard Depardieu; 22 costumi teatrali originali; il video documentario Handmade Cinema di Laura Delli Colli, nonché una raccolta digitale creata dal duo Brivido Pop ed ispirata a La Dolce Vita.

La mostra metterà in risalto l’eccellenza di Rocchetti & Rocchetti, una piccola azienda italiana, composta da una squadra di 16 esperti artigiani, guidati da Fernanda Rocchetti. L’azienda disegna e produce parrucche per cinema, teatro, e produzioni televisive, e si è guadagnata, nel corso degli anni, fama mondiale per il suo artigianato. Molte delle parrucche che l’azienda crea dal 1874 si sono rivelate fondamentali per la realizzazione di personaggi e per imprimere loro forza vitale, sia nel cinema che a teatro. Questo è particolarmente ben esemplificato nella Marie Antoinette di Sofia Coppola, nel Casanova di Fellini e nell’Angelica di Visconti, personaggi tutti diventati celebri grazie anche alle loro parrucche. Le parrucche saranno esposte su visi agentati e dorati e coperti di cristalli creati dall’artista italo-persiano Howtan Re.

Tra le creazioni dell’azienda figurano le parrucche di Robert De Niro in Once Upon a Time in America, di Robert Duvall in Hotel Colonial e di Al Pacino in The Devil’s Advocate. Col passare del tempo, ROCCHETTI & ROCCHETTI è diventato un importante punto di riferimento per Hollywood, creando parrucche per importanti film quali Gangs of New York, The Scarlet Letter, Moulin Rouge! e Tristan and Isolde.

L’esposizione presenterà inoltre il documentario Handmade Cinema, di Laura Delli Colli, che consiste in una raccolta di interviste, condotte dall’autrice e da Guido Torlonia, ad alcuni dei protagonisti dell’industria cinematografica italiana. Laura Delli Colli, giornalista e scrittrice, sarà presente alla mostra.  Il duo Brivido POP presenterà invece una raccolta digitale di momenti emblematici del periodo comunemente chiamato La Dolce Vita. La raccolta include famose scene con grandi attori quali Anita Ekberg, Marcello Mastroianni, Audrey Hepburn e Ingrid Bergman.

Source:  Italian Embassy

CIBO The Culinary Institute of Bologna For Foodies

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Begin the day’s culinary adventure at CIBO -The Culinary Institute of Bologna For Foodies by in the early morning by meeting in a local café. There you will enjoy complimentary cappuccino and brioche. We will outline the day’s menu and then we will proceed to the famous Bologna market.

Along the way to the market we will outline for you, our “guests and students”, the history of the town and the several monuments that we will pass upon our way. You will explore this wonderful market with us as we purchase, taste and explain the various ingredients needed for our culinary creations.

Leaving the market, we will begin a memorable journey into the preparation of authentic Emilia Romania cuisine.

In the morning we will make regional pasta by hand using the authentic, “handed down”, “Mattarello” (rolling pin). Each participant will make his/her own dish of pasta. Classes ARE NOT DEMONSTRATIONS but rather true hands-on experiences! And we are not just pasta….Explore our website for a multitude of exciting, creative cooking classes.

Next, we will have lunch, eating the pastas we made accompanied by our local wines. In the afternoon we will begin the preparations for the evening’s meal. This meal will include an antipasti, salad, main dish, side dishes and dessert and of course, more regional wines!

If you have any particular dishes you would like to prepare or any culinary techniques you would like to learn please tell us and we will try our best to incorporate those requests into our program.

At CIBO we do not have customers; we prefer to think of you as guests. Our goal is not merely to meet your needs but rather to exceed your expectations. So come to the Culinary Institute of Bologna to expand your cooking knowledge and have fun eating and drinking. We look forward to meeting you, cooking with you and sharing our knowledge and love of Italian food.

Sincerely,
Marcello


CIBO
Via Augusto Righi n.30B
40126 Bologna

Website: Http://www.cookingclassesinbologna.com
Videos: http://www.tinyurl.com/cibofilms

Contact name: Marcello Alperti
Contact email: cookingclassesinbologna@gmail.com

If you want to know more about the chef owner of the school just Google ….
” Stefano Corvucci Bologna”

PS possible dishes to cook:

CIBO dishes:

Handmade Egg Pasta –
Pasta Fresca
Sausage Ragu Bolognese
Béchamel Sauce
Pork Ribs and Sausages Stew
Tortellini
Gnocchi
Spuntature e Salsiccie in Umido Tortelloni
Tagliatelle
Passatelli (Unique to Emilia Romagna)
Lasagne Bolognese Rabbit Ragu
Traditional Balsamic Vinegar Dishes
Anoloni
Stock Brodo
Caserecce Salsicci e Funghi
Zucchini Leak Soup Tiramisu
Prosciutto Crudo di Parma /Cutello Creations
Asparagi Ravennati
Capellettacci
Squacquerone From Romagna
Crescentine
Stinco Di Maiale
Parmigiana Reggiano & Formaggio di Fossa Recipes
Bollito Misto
Risotto Parmigiana
and MORE!

Fifty years of history in the space sector: relations between Italy and the U.S

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Fifty years of bilateral agreements with NASA: it was 1962 when Italy signed the first agreement with NASA to launch the first Italian satellite from the base of Wallops Island (Virginia), followed by the first launch of an Italian satellite from the Italian launch base of Malindi (Kenya). The first joint mission of NASA-ASI, LAGEOS, dates back to 1992, it was dedicated to the study of the Earth’s geodesy and geodynamics. In that same year mission Tethered was launched to study the ionosphere. The Cassini-Huygens interplanetary mission, still in orbit, was launched in 1997 with the aim of observing Saturn and its satellite Titan. In 2011 the Italian Team was awarded the prestigious “Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Trophy” in recognition of that mission’s efforts and achievements.

Many Italian scientific experiments were carried aboard NASA missions: Swift (2004) for the study of X-rays; SHARAD (2005), the radar onboard the mission Mars Exploration that found water on the red planet, DAWN (2007) for the observation of the asteroids Vesta and Ceres; FERMI / GLAST (2008) for the study of gamma rays; JUNO (2011) directed toward Jupiter to orbit the poles; NuStar (2012), dedicated to the study of X-rays.

Under the International Space Station (ISS), ASI and NASA have established a strong and privileged partnership through a Memorandum signed in 1997. Italy has produced almost 50% of the pressurized volume of the space station, the three Multipurpose Logistics Modules (MPLM) in cooperation with NASA and the Cupola and Nodes 2 and 3 in cooperation with ESA. Since 2011 one of the three modules has been permanently attached to the ISS.

The Italian cooperation in the space station provides a return in terms of flight opportunities for Italian astronauts: Franco Malerba (1992), Umberto Guidoni and Maurizio Cheli (1996), Umberto Guidoni (2001), Paolo Nespoli (2007) and Roberto Vittori (2011). Two new Italian astronauts of the European Astronaut Corps, Luca Parmitano and Samantha Cristoforetti, will follow, respectively, in 2013 and 2014.

(Italian Embassy)

White House Meeting Between Italian President Giorgio Napolitano and President Barack Obama

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On Friday, February 16, 2013, Italy’s outgoing President Giorgio Napolitano, met with President Barack Obama at the White House.  The following is the official transcript as released by White House and the video of their remarks prior to meeting:

PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, I want to extend the warmest greetings to my good friend, President Napolitano, on a return visit to the White House. I think it’s entirely appropriate the day after Valentine’s Day, since we know that St. Valentine was associated with Italy, that we had a chance to express our love for the Italian people and my high regard for President Napolitano.

He has been an extraordinary leader not just in Italy but also in Europe. We’ve had occasion to meet many times in which we have expressed again and again the importance of the transatlantic relationship, and the deep and abiding friendship and connection and bond between the Italian people and the American people.

And obviously, we have constantly talked about the extraordinary connection that derives from the tradition of Italian-Americans making enormous contributions to the United States. President Napolitano has been so gracious in talking about his memories of the role that America played in liberating Europe and instituting the kinds of democratic practices and traditions that have served both sides of the Atlantic so well for so many years.

I want to thank the people of Italy for their enormous contributions to the NATO Alliance. Italy is one of our biggest contributors in Afghanistan, and makes enormous sacrifices. They welcome and host our troops on Italian soil. The economic bonds between our two countries are very significant. And in all this, President Napolitano has shown himself to be a visionary leader who has helped to guide and steer Europe towards greater unification, but always with a strong transatlantic relationship in mind.

The last point I would make is that President Napolitano has also just been a good personal friend, a tremendous host to my family when they visited Italy. You should know, Mr. President, that one of the few things that my daughters asked me after I was reelected was, does this mean we can go back to Italy again? (Laughter.) So I confirmed to them that any excuse we can find to visit Italy, we shall return hopefully.

And this will give us an opportunity to not only visit but also to talk about some important issues, including the world economy. I announced at the State of the Union this week my interest and intention in pursuing a U.S.-European Union free trade agreement, which I know is something of great interest to the President. I’ll be interested in hearing from him how he anticipates the elections and government formation in Italy and what implications that has for the larger European project. And I’m sure we’ll have a chance to talk about some national security issues as well.

 

But my main message is to say thank you for your extraordinary service, and I’m so glad that we had an opportunity to visit once again before you move onto even better things — I assume they’re at least having more fun than politics.

PRESIDENT NAPOLITANO: Thank you very much. I don’t need to say how deeply touched I am by the generous appreciation we just had of my long public service in the interest of Italy, of our alliance, of our common goals. And I am grateful to President Obama for inviting me to pay a farewell visit at the White House, and for giving me the opportunity of an exchange of ideas before I complete my presidential mandate.

I am sure that we will be able today to express a common sense of confidence in the future of Italy and of U.S.-Italy relations; more generally speaking, in the future of our joint commitment to advance global peace, democracy, and human rights.

Italy has made remarkable progress in the past 14 months — the Italian government, with parliamentary support of different and even opposite political forces, and with the comprehension of different social groups and of all citizens. While this progress must and will continue and be developed because Italy needs it, Europe needs it, and I think the world as a whole needs it.

The announcement which has been made — just made in Brussels and in Washington was significant because I was impressed by the words we, the leaders of the European Union and of the United States towards a beautiful incipit. And as well, I think that trade — the transatlantic trade and investment partnership, which will be realized — now we are the opening talks — but I am sure about also the conclusion can represent a relevant contribution for promoting a new wave of development of technologic advancement of social justice on both shores of the Atlantic. And I think it can represent even something more. It is to say a new historic stage in relations between Europe and the United States — not only economically, but also from a political and moral point of view.

My conviction is that the effect that a shift has been taking place in the center of gravity of the world development of international relations doesn’t cancel at all the crucial importance of transatlantic alliance, of transatlantic relations. On the contrary — it represents a new stimulus for us to make such a framework of relation more active, more competitive. It is absolutely necessary for a better world to have our common heritage of values and experiences be a decisive factor also in the course of globalization in the next future.

It is the spirit in which I adhere to testify once more my personal friendship and my admiration for President Obama, only deploring that the visit of the President and his family in Rome was so short, and expecting a new visit also in my new capacity. I be in another palace, but I be there to welcome you.

PRESIDENT OBAMA: That’s great. Thank you.

END

Italian Elections: Candidates for North America Debate in Washington, DC

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Candidates for the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies traveled to the nation’s capital on Sunday to participate at a candidates’ forum hosted by the Voce Italian newspaper.  Candidates from all the lists, except the PD, participated. The participants were: Dom Serafini (PDL), Simone Lolli (M5S), Giorgio Mosconi (Fare), Melo Cicala (Insieme President), and Vincenzo Arcobelli (lista Monti). Francesco Isgro, Executive Editor of Voce Italiana who moderated the debate, said that it was clear to him  that all the candidates agreed that Italian abroad were not well represented in prior administrations and that Italians abroad needed to speak with one voice.

The event was co-sponsored by the Lido Civic Club, the Abruzzi & Molise Heritage Society, the national Council for the Promotion of the Italian Language in American Schools (COPILAS), and the Sons of Italy International Lodge.

Italian elections 2013: Italian citizens in America will select one senator and two representatives to Chamber of Deputies

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Italian citizens in THE United States who are registered with AIRE can cast their votes for one senator and for two representatives to the Chamber of Deputies.  The foloowing is the list of candidates:

PD (allied with SEL, PSI)

CAMERA

Gianluca Galletto (USA – New York)
Francesca La Marca (Canada – Toronto)
Giovanni Rapanà (Canada – Montreal)
Marco Piana (California – Los Angeles)

SENATO
1 Renato Turano (USA – Chicago)
2 Rocco Di Trolio (Canada – Vancouver)

PDL

CAMERA
Amato L. Berardi
Paolo Giuseppe Canciani
Domenico Delli Carpini
Domenico Serafini

SENATO
Basilio Giordano
Enza Michienzi

MOVIMENTO 5 STELLE

CAMERA
Sandro Sessarego
Eugenio Daviso
Roberto Berritta

SENATO
Simone Lolli
Arturo Busca

CON MONTI PER L’ITALIA
(allied with UDC, FLI e MAIE)

CAMERA
Augusto Sorriso
Liborio (detto Robert) Zambito,
Angela Rosaria (detta Fucsia)
Nissoli Fitzgerald,
Luigi Solimeo

SENATO
Antonio Rocco (detto Tony) Porretta,
Vincenzo Arcobelli

INSIEME PER GLI ITALIANI

SENATO
Antonio Caruso
Cesare Sassi

CAMERA
Salvatore Ferrigno