Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni revealed on Sunday that Italy has signed cooperation agreements and industrial agreements worth approximately $10 billion with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as part of a strong strategic partnership between the two countries, according to what Reuters reported.
Meloni met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in AlUla, the Kingdom, earlier today.
“There is huge potential in our cooperation, and I hope that this visit will open a whole new phase in our partnership,” Meloni said. “This is what the joint declaration we signed today foresees. It indicates that our two countries can expand their horizons and explore many new opportunities together.”
Meloni added that Italy and Saudi Arabia signed “several agreements at the governmental level, and also supported the memorandums of understanding signed by public and private entities during the visit.”
She pointed to several sectors of joint cooperation that could be strengthened, including infrastructure, energy, defence, sports, entertainment and tourism.
Highness #Crown_Prince The Prime Minister of the Italian Republic signs an agreement establishing the Strategic Partnership Council between the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Government of the Italian Republic. https://t.co/nIlSWZGKmS#Italian_Prime_Minister_in-Ala | #SPA pic.twitter.com/zZgpxGI2K0
– SPA Royal News (@spagov) January 26, 2025
Meloni’s office stated, in a statement, that the Prime Minister and the Saudi Crown Prince also discussed during their meeting “a just and lasting peace in Ukraine”, strengthening the ceasefire in Gaza, supporting reconstruction efforts in Syria and assisting Lebanon.
Strategic Partnership Council
Bin Salman and Meloni also signed, on Sunday, the agreement “establishing the Strategic Partnership Council” between the two countries, according to what was reported by the official Saudi News Agency (SPA).
The agency said that the two sides discussed “aspects of bilateral relations and ways to support and enhance them in various fields, in a way that achieves common interests.”
Meloni’s visit comes less than two weeks after the visit of Italian Minister of Environment and Energy Security Gilberto Piccito to Riyadh, where he signed an agreement with the Kingdom within the framework of the International Mining Conference, “aiming to enhance cooperation in the field of transformation and energy security.”
Italy is among the 20 largest countries investing in Saudi Arabia, as there are more than 150 Italian companies holding a foreign investment license in Saudi Arabia.
