Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed developments in the Red Sea and Gaza Strip by telephone, the Italian Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.
The statement said:
“The recent attack by Yemen’s Houthis on the Greek oil tanker Sounion is a matter of grave concern due to the concrete risks of an environmental disaster and reaffirms the need to further intensify efforts to guarantee the safety of navigation in the Red Sea.”
Tajani reiterated “Italy’s “continued commitment to the Aspides (EU’s Red Sea safety of navigation) mission and that we will consider strengthening it,” it said.
Since October last year, in solidarity with Gaza, which is facing a devastating war from Israel, the Houthis have attacked ships belonging to Israeli companies or transporting goods to and from Israel with rockets and drones.
Tajani also expressed full support for Rome’s US-led mediation efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and prevent the risk of expanding conflict in the region, noting that coordination with Washington is important as a strategy to reduce tensions in the region and stop the spiral of violence.
Tajani and Blinken also discussed developments in the military conflict in Ukraine and recalled that the next meeting of the G7 foreign ministers will be held on September 23 in New York at the opening of the UN General Assembly.
They also agreed on the need to continue dialogue with China and expressed similar views on the need to consider joint initiatives to support the important role of the central bank in Libya and freedom of navigation in the Indo-Pacific region, the statement said.Tajani said on X:
“Long and friendly conversation with @SecBlinken. We shared assessments of the crises in #Gaza and in #MarRosso (Red Sea). Rome and Washington are united in calling for moderation from all regional actors. Avoid at all costs a further escalation to bring peace to the Middle East.”
