Italy and Saudi Arabia Confronting the Challenges of the XXI Century

136 Pages·2013·0.95 MB·English

ISSN 2239-2122
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IAI Research Papers Italy and Saudi Arabia are united by numerous and strong ties that have developed over
Italy and
the decades. In 1932, the two countries signed a Treaty of Friendship that constitutes ITA The IAI Research Papers are brief monographs written by one or
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N.1 European Security and the Future of Transatlantic Relations, Y more authors (IAI or external experts) on current problems of inter-
the origin of their bilateral relations. The celebrations of the 80th anniversary of the A
edited by Riccardo Alcaro and Erik Jones, 2011 establishment of Saudi-Italian diplomatic relations provide an opportunity to assess ND national politics and international relations. The aim is to promote
S
N. 2 Democracy in the EU after the Lisbon Treaty, the state of these relations, as well as to advance some proposals as to how the two AU Saudi Arabia greater and more up to date knowledge of emerging issues and
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edited by Raaello Matarazzo, 2011 countries’ mutual cooperation and engagement in the regional and international arenas AI trends and help prompt public debate.
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could be strengthened. The steady development of Saudi-Italian relations over the past A
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N. 3 The Challenges of State Sustainability in the Mediterranean, IA
edited by Silvia Colombo and Nathalie Tocci, 2011 80 years has most recently been aff ected by the accelerated changes taking place in the CO confronting the A non-profi t organization, IAI was founded in 1965 by Altiero Spinel-
Mediterranean region as part of the so-called “Arab Spring”. This region represents a N
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R li, its fi rst director.
N. 4 Re-thinking Western Policies in Light of the Arab Uprisings, priority for both countries and a signifi cant link between them. Both economic impera- ON
T The Institute aims to promote understanding of international politics
edited by Riccardo Alcaro and Miguel Haubrich-Seco, 2012 tives and a geo-strategic rationale lie behind the increasingly frequent calls for a conso- IN
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lidation of bilateral relations between Italy and the countries of the GCC in general, and T challenges of through research, promotion of political ideas and strategies, disse-
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N. 5 The transformation of the armed forces: the Forza NEC program, Saudi Arabia in particular. EC S mination of knowledge and education in the fi eld of foreign policy.
edited by Michele Nones and Alessandro Marrone, 2012 HA R IAI main research sectors are: European institutions and policies;
This book wishes to commemorate the outstanding level of engagement between Italy L E
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N. 6 Strengthening the Africa-EU Partnership on Peace and Security, and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in a number of domains. It also aims to advance our ENG AP the XXI century Italian foreign policy; trends in the global economy and internatio-
E nalisation processes in Italy; the Mediterranean and the Middle East;
edited by Nicoletta Pirozzi, 2012 knowledge of the most promising areas of cooperation, the challenges facing such coo- SO P
peration and the prospects for future mutual engagement. FT H security and defence; and transatlantic relations.
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N. 7 Stop Mass Atrocities, E C
edited by Luis Peral and Nicoletta Pirozzi, 2013 XX R
SILVIA COLOMBO is Research Fellow in the Mediterranean and Middle East Area at IAI. I C A
E E
N. 8 The Uneasy Balance, N
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edited by Riccardo Alcaro and Andrea Dessì, 2013 R E
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N. 9 Global Turkey in Europe, I
A
Edited by Senem Aydın-Düzgit, Anne Duncker,
Daniela Huber, E. Fuat Keyman and Nathalie Tocci, 2013 I
N. 10 Italy and Saudi Arabia confronting the challenges of the XXI century,
edited by Silvia Colombo, 2013
Edited by
Silvia Colombo
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www.nuovacultura.it (cid:15) IS(cid:24)B(cid:35)N (cid:35)9(cid:25)78(cid:33)-(cid:25)88(cid:4)-(cid:38)68(cid:39)1(cid:38)2-(cid:42)1(cid:38)51(cid:45)-8(cid:5)9788868121518_
SEGUICI SUI SOCIAL NETWORK 136_
12.00 EURO LN_02 Edizioni Nuova Cultura
IAI Research Papers
Italy and Saudi Arabia confronting the
challenges of the XXI century
Edited by Silvia Colombo
Edizioni Nuova Cultura
Series Editor
Natalino Ronzitti
First published 2013 by Edizioni Nuova Cultura
For Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI)
Via Angelo Brunetti 9 - I-00186 Roma
www.iai.it
Copyright © 2013 Edizioni Nuova Cultura - Roma
ISBN: 9788868121518
Cover: by the author
Graphic Composition: by the author
The unauthorized reproduction of this book, even partial, carried out by any means,
including photocopying, even for internal or didactic use, is prohibited by copyright.
Table of Contents
List of Contributors .......................................................................................................................7
List of Abbreviations ....................................................................................................................9
Preface .........................................................................................................................................11
Opening Remark by Prince Saud Al Faisal, Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Saudi Arabia ........................................................................................................................13
Opening Remark by Emma Bonino, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Italy. ...............15
1. History of an 80-Year-Long Friendship: Italy – Saudi Arabia 1932-2012
Matteo Pizzigallo ...........................................................................................................17
2. Saudi Arabia and Italy in the Mediterranean: An Emerging Dimension
in Bilateral Relations
Roberto Aliboni ...............................................................................................................37

3. Opportunities for Italian-Saudi Relations in the Post-Arab Spring
Environment
Elena Maestri ...................................................................................................................51
4. Saudi Arabia – Europe Economic Cooperation: Prospects and
Potentialities
Mai Al-Torki ......................................................................................................................69
5. Towards Strengthening Saudi-Italian Economic Cooperation
Abdullah Al-Mobty .........................................................................................................79
6. The Energy Security Challenge in EU-GCC Relations
Giacomo Luciani .............................................................................................................91
7. Parliamentary Relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and
the Republic of Italy
Rashed Al-Kathiri ........................................................................................................107
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8. Saudi-Italian Relations. A History of Political and Cultural
Cooperation
Faysal Bin Abdul Rahman Bin Muammar ......................................................119
9. Conclusion
Silvia Colombo ............................................................................................................127
Annex ......................................................................................................................................133
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List of Contributors
R(cid:276)(cid:263)(cid:266)(cid:279)(cid:281)(cid:276) A(cid:273)(cid:270)(cid:263)(cid:276)(cid:275)(cid:270) is Scienti(cid:976)ic Advisor at the International Affairs
Institute (IAI) in Rome and former Director and Vice President of the
Institute.
S(cid:270)(cid:273)(cid:283)(cid:270)(cid:262) C(cid:276)(cid:273)(cid:276)(cid:274)(cid:263)(cid:276) is Research Fellow at the International Affairs Institute
(IAI) in Rome where she works on transatlantic relations in the
Mediterranean, Euro-Mediterranean relations, EU-GCC relations and
politics in the Arab world.
R(cid:262)(cid:280)(cid:269)(cid:266)(cid:265) A(cid:273)-K(cid:262)(cid:281)(cid:269)(cid:270)(cid:279)(cid:270) is Member of the Saudi Shura Council and Chair of
the Saudi-Italian Parliamentary Friendship Committee.
G(cid:270)(cid:262)(cid:264)(cid:276)(cid:274)(cid:276) L(cid:282)(cid:264)(cid:270)(cid:262)(cid:275)(cid:270) is Scienti(cid:976)ic Advisor at the Master in International
Energy at the Paris School of International Affairs, Sciences-Po, Paris;
adjunct Professor of International Affairs and co-Director of the
Executive Master in International Oil and Gas Leadership at the Graduate
Institute of International Affairs, Geneva; and a Princeton University
Global Scholar af(cid:976)iliated to the Near Eastern Studies Department and the
Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.
E(cid:273)(cid:266)(cid:275)(cid:262) M(cid:262)(cid:266)(cid:280)(cid:281)(cid:279)(cid:270) is Tenured Researcher and Adjunct Professor of History
and Institutions of the Muslim World at the Faculty of Political and Social
Sciences of Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milan.
A(cid:263)(cid:265)(cid:282)(cid:273)(cid:273)(cid:262)(cid:269) A(cid:273)-M(cid:276)(cid:263)(cid:281)(cid:286) is Chairman of the Board of the Council of Saudi
Chambers in Riyadh.
F(cid:262)(cid:286)(cid:280)(cid:262)(cid:273) B(cid:270)(cid:275) A(cid:263)(cid:265)(cid:282)(cid:273) R(cid:262)(cid:269)(cid:274)(cid:262)(cid:275) B(cid:270)(cid:275) M(cid:282)(cid:262)(cid:274)(cid:274)(cid:262)(cid:279) is Secretary-General of the
Vienna-based King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Centre for
Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue (KAICIID).
M(cid:262)(cid:281)(cid:281)(cid:266)(cid:276) P(cid:270)(cid:287)(cid:287)(cid:270)(cid:268)(cid:262)(cid:273)(cid:273)(cid:276) is full Professor of History of International Relations
at the University of Naples “Federico II” and at the Aeronautics Academy
of Pozzuoli, Italy.
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LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS
M(cid:262)(cid:270) A(cid:273)-T(cid:276)(cid:279)(cid:272)(cid:270) is Director for Europe at the Saudi Arabian General
Investment Authority (SAGIA).
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List of Abbreviations
ARAMCO Arabian American Oil Company
CASOC Californian Arabian Standard Oil Company
CSC Council of Saudi Chambers
ECFR European Council of Fatwa and Research
EU European Union
FDI Foreign Direct Investment
FTA Free Trade Agreement
GCC Gulf Cooperation Council
GDP Gross Domestic Product
HRDF Human Resource Development Fund
IEA International Energy Agency
KAICIID King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Centre for
Interrreligious and Intercultural Dialogue
KAUST King Abdullah University for Science and Technology
KSA Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
MENA Middle East and North Africa
NICDP National Industrial Clusters Development Programme
NOC National Oil Company
OECD Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development
OIC Organisation of the Islamic Conference
OPEC Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries
PIF Public Investment Fund
SAMA Saudi Monetary Agency
SIDF Saudi Industrial Development Fund
SME Medium-Sized Enterprise
SOCAL Standard Oil of California
TNC Transnational Company
UNCTAD United Nations Conference for Trade and Development

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