UAE to Invest $40 Billion in Italy

Meloni met with UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who arrived in Rome for an official visit and the opening of the Italy-UAE business forum, in the morning at the prime ministerial palace, Chigi.

The two later attended the Italy-UAE business forum together in Rome.

Prime Minister Meloni, in his speech at the forum attended by around 300 business people from both countries, stated that relations with the UAE have gained momentum, saying, "I see this as a historic day. Sometimes we use this word inappropriately, but today is one of the occasions when it is not inappropriate to talk about a historic day. This forum is a turning point in the relationship between our countries, during the first state visit of the UAE President to Italy."

"We have decided to take bilateral cooperation to a level never reached before. Today we have signed more than 40 bilateral agreements. Today marks another starting point in our bilateral cooperation," Meloni said.

Meloni, who stated that they have written a "magnificent" page in their shared history with the agreement that the UAE will make investments in his country, said, "I welcome the UAE's decision to invest $40 billion in Italy. This is one of the most important and impressive investments in our country's history and an extraordinary display of friendship towards Italy, its production system and economy."

Meloni noted that the deep cooperation signed today with the UAE will develop at multiple levels.

Meanwhile, in a joint statement by Italy and the UAE shared by the Italian Prime Ministry, it was stated that the more than 40 new agreements signed were aimed at increasing strategic cooperation in priority areas such as economy, investment, defense, energy, sustainable energy and energy transition, including peaceful nuclear energy, space and the promotion of cultural heritage.

The statement said the two leaders expressed a common desire to further strengthen this partnership and move towards a "Comprehensive Strategic Partnership", adding: "In this context, the UAE has committed to investing $40 billion in Italy in key sectors."

The statement said that today's cooperation "holds an important place" in the framework of the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) project, which aims to connect India with the Gulf countries and Europe and promote economic development by expanding trade links.

According to the joint statement, the agreement signed between the two countries foresees cooperation in the fields of developing trade-economic relations, cultural cooperation, cooperation in science, critical technologies, space and innovation, defense, cybersecurity, police and judiciary, cooperation in the fields of energy, water, sustainability, food security, agriculture, health, and cooperation with Africa within the framework of Italy's development initiative towards Africa, the Mattei Plan.