26 February 2026 The members of the PFG with Italy, the Holy See and the Sovereign Order of Malta in official visit to the Republic of Italy
Thursday, 26 February 2026
PFG with Italy, the Holy See and the Sovereign Order of Malta Visits Italy
The Head of the Parliamentary Friendship Group with Italy, the Holy See and the Sovereign Order of Malta, Jovan Palalic, and PFG members Biljana Pantic Pilja, Olivera Denic, Jadranka Jovanovic, Ana Miljanic and Aleksandar Mirkovic paid an official visit to the Republic of Italy from 23 to 26 February 2026, during which they had meetings with the President of Chamber of Deputies, Lorenzo Fontana, Chairperson of the Senate Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee Stefania Craxi, Chairman of the Chamber of Deputies Foreign and European Affairs Committee Giulio Tremonti, Chairman of the European Union Policies Committee Alessandro Giglio Vigna, Head of the Italy-Serbia Bilateral Friendship Group, Dimitri Coin, Minister for Parliamentary Relations Luca Ciriani, Member of Parliament Piero Fassino, as well as representatives of the Sovereign Order of Malta.
In the meetings, the officials confirmed the strategic partnership and traditional friendship between the Republic of Serbia and the Republic of Italy, along with mutual readiness to further improve cooperation in all areas of common interest.
The talks focused on strengthening political, economic and cultural cooperation, with a special focus on Serbia’s European integration process. They emphasised that Serbia remains firmly committed to continuing reforms and progress towards membership in the European Union, with the Italian side reiterating its clear and unconditional support for Serbia's European path and stressing that this support exists at all levels of government.
The Republic of Serbia’s delegation highlighted the problem of Kosovo-Metohija, informing the hosts about the position of the Serbian people and the challenges they face, including security and institutional pressures. They also drew attention to the Law on Foreigners, due to enter into force on 15 March, with the assessment that its implementation could have serious consequences for the Serbian community in Kosovo-Metohija. The Italian side expressed interest in additional information on the aforementioned issue.
The officials also recalled the historical connection between the two nations, especially since this year marks the 110th anniversary of Italian army’s great humanitarian operation during the First World War, when it provided assistance to the Serbian army and people during their retreat through Albania. This event was emphasised as a lasting symbol of solidarity and friendship between Serbia and Italy.
The members of the Serbian delegation stressed that the exceptionally good relations between the two countries are the result of intensive cooperation at the highest level, as well as continuous parliamentary activities that contribute to further deepening contacts and better understanding of mutual positions, with particular reference to the fact that there is a constructive and substantive dialogue between the President of the Republic of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Italy Giorgia Meloni.
It was assessed that Serbia has a strong and reliable partner in Italy within the European Union, and that there is room for further improvement of cooperation in the coming period. By strengthening relations with Italy, the Republic of Serbia can make significant progress in the realisation of its strategic goals.
At the meetings, Italy once again confirmed its full support for Serbia and openness to further strengthen bilateral relations and parliamentary cooperation.
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