Media Center

Press Release


OAS Participated in Fifth Rome Italy-Latin America and Caribbean Conference

  October 6, 2011

The Organization of American States (OAS) attended in Rome the Fifth Italy-Latin America and the Caribbean Conference, the main forum between the European country and the Western Hemisphere.

During her presentation at the fourth session of the meeting, the Director of International Affairs of the OAS, Irene Klinger, emphasized "the importance of building a strategic triangle between the regions to begin a flow of dialogue, and to broaden the avenues of cooperation focused on increasing a dynamic exchange of experiences, knowledge and practices."

Klinger noted that "the Summit of Heads of State and Government have been a key factor to define mechanisms for cooperation and integration and to help American countries to interact with other regions of the world." "Hence the importance that we combine our work to reach basic agreements and regional consensus around articulated programs of cooperation and mutual legal assistance in the framework of respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, and of course the protection of human rights," she said.

The OAS representative offered the support of the hemispheric organization to "help find common denominators and thus multiply the importance of Latin America and the Caribbean in the world," adding that "the modern world challenges require global responses, and regional and multilateral agencies are the best tool we have to transform globalization into prosperity."

The Conference, held every two years, was held on this occasion with this central theme: "Latin American integration and consolidation of relations between Italy and the subcontinent, framed bi-regional dialogue in the EU-Latin America."

The meeting was attended by government representatives from Latin American countries, major international and regional organizations and several foreign ministries of European countries, as well as senior officials of the Italian economic and institutional world.

The Conferences Italy-Latin America and the Caribbean are organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE) of Italy in collaboration with the Instituto Italo-Latino Americano (IILA), the Centro Internazionale Studi di Policy (CeSPI), the Regione Lombardia, and other entities and institutions of the Consultative Committee for the National Conferences of Italy and Latin America.

For more information, please visit the OAS Website at www.oas.org.

Reference: E-880/11