by InTrieste
At a business roundtable hosted by the National Italian American Foundation in New York, Massimiliano Fedriga, governor of Friuli Venezia Giulia and president of Italy’s Conference of Regions and Autonomous Provinces, outlined the region’s strategic role in strengthening economic ties between Italy and the United States.
Fedriga highlighted Friuli Venezia Giulia’s involvement in the proposed India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), a major infrastructure and trade initiative being developed in coordination with Italy’s national government and international partners. He said the project could position the Port of Trieste as a key logistics hub linking Europe with Asia, particularly India.
Italy’s geographic location, he noted, offers what he described as a “natural platform” in the Mediterranean, providing Western democracies with strategic alternatives for trade routes to the Far East.
Also attending the roundtable were regional production activities councillor Sergio Emidio Bini, Lombardy welfare councillor Guido Bertolaso, and Lombardy undersecretary Raffaele Cattaneo.
Speaking in his role as president of the Conference of Regions, Fedriga said Italian regional governments are committed to expanding cooperation with the United States through bilateral agreements between individual Italian regions and American states. The goal, he said, is to build on existing partnerships and create faster, more accessible pathways for investment.
He added that while each Italian region offers distinct economic opportunities, successful collaboration depends above all on personal and institutional relationships.
Fedriga also thanked the National Italian American Foundation for its longstanding efforts to strengthen transatlantic ties, praising the organization’s continued commitment to fostering cooperation between Italy and the United States.
Later in the day, during a meeting with Italy’s ambassador to the United Nations, Giorgio Marrapodi, discussions focused on the strength of science and research in Friuli Venezia Giulia and the region’s capacity for innovation.
Fedriga said the conversation opened the door to new opportunities for collaboration and investment in the region’s scientific institutions, describing Friuli Venezia Giulia’s research ecosystem as internationally distinctive and an asset that should be promoted more strongly on the global stage.
