On June 1, 2024, the Tchaikovsky National Music Academy of Ukraine hosted an artistic event dedicated to the 214th anniversary of the Argentine May Revolution and the 78th anniversary of the Day of the Italian Republic, dedicated to the Argentine composer Astor Piazzolla.
This joint project was initiated and supported by the Embassy of the Argentine Republic in Ukraine, the Embassy of Italy and the Italian Cultural Institute in Ukraine in cooperation with the Tchaikovsky National Music Academy of Ukraine.
The artistic event of the friendly states of Italy and Argentina was a great manifestation of solidarity with the Ukrainian people and a significant example of cultural diplomacy.
At the beginning of the concert, the anthems of Italy, Argentina and Ukraine were performed by the Orchestra of Folk Instruments under the direction of Honored Artist of Ukraine Andriy Ivanysh.
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Argentine Republic to Ukraine Ms. Elena Leticia Teresa Mukusinski, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Italian Republic to Ukraine Mr. Pier Francesco Zazzo and Acting Minister of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine Mr. Rostyslav Karandieiev delivered welcoming speeches.
In her speech, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Argentine Republic to Ukraine, Ms. Elena Leticia Teresa Mukusinski, elaborated on the common history of Argentina and Italy in organizing this cultural event.
Between 1847 and 1957, Argentina received about 3 million Italian immigrants and it is estimated that 60% of the population of
Argentina are of Italian descent. Argentina is the Latin American country with the largest number of Italian immigrants, ranking second in the Americas after the United States.
In addition, Argentina has the largest Italian community on its territory, followed by Germany, Switzerland, Brazil and France. 15% of Italians who have settled abroad live in Argentina.
In fact, General Manuel Belgrano, a national hero who played one of the most important roles in the process of Argentina’s independence when the First National Government was formed in May 1810 and became the creator of the Argentine flag, was the son of an Italian immigrant from the province of Imperia in the Liguria region.
The list of Argentine presidents of Italian descent is no less significant: Bartolomé Mitre, Carlos Pellegrini, Arturo Frondisi, Arturo Illia, Mauricio Macri, and our current president, Javier Milei.
And the number of famous people, artists, scientists, scholars and athletes is countless, including Pope Francis, Juan Manuel Fangio, Clorindo Testa and, among others, our dear Astor Piazzolla,” the diplomat said.
The Ambassador also expressed her deep admiration for the courage and resilience of the Ukrainian nation: “As you know, Argentina has voted against Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine in all UN General Assembly resolutions and international forums. We are participating in two working groups of President Zelenskyy’s “Formula for Peace”.”
For his part, the Ambassador of the Republic of Italy to Ukraine, Pier Francesco Zazzo, noted in his speech that Astor Piazzolla “was not only considered one of the greatest composers of the twentieth century for his unique tango works, which also contains elements of jazz and classical music, but he was also a descendant of an Italian family in Argentina, and his compositions intertwine Italian roots with the Argentine soul, symbolizing the unbreakable friendship between two nations united by a passion for music and culture.”
A musical gift for the guests was a performance by the world-famous Italian bandoneon player Mario Stefano Pietrodarki accompanied by the Academy’s string quintet and orchestra of accordionists under the direction of artistic director and conductor Joseph Franz.
Maestro Pietrodarki captivated the audience with his virtuoso playing and unsurpassed style of performance, performing works by the legendary Argentine musician and composer Astor Piazzolla, as well as by no less legendary Italian composers Ennio Morricone, Nino Rota, and Niccolo Piovani.
Argentina recognized Ukraine on December 5, 1991. On January 6, 1992, Ukraine and Argentina established diplomatic relations. The Argentine Embassy in Ukraine was opened in May 1993.
Italy recognized Ukraine’s independence on December 28, 1991. Diplomatic relations with the Italian Republic were established on January 29, 1992.
The Italian embassy in Ukraine has held a ceremony of handing over three ambulances with humanitarian aid, which was the result of the mission of the La Memoria Viva association.
According to the embassy’s press service, employees of the diplomatic institution met Italian volunteers who brought three cars for their symbolic handover to Ukrainians.
The ceremony was attended by people’s deputy Oleksiy Krasov, deputy chairman of Kharkiv region Eugene Ivanov and two representatives of local authorities from the same region – chairman of Bogodukhov district Anatoliy Rystsov and mayor of Krasnokutsk Irina Karabut.
“‘La Memoria Viva’ has launched its 45th humanitarian mission in Ukraine, which continues unabated after more than two years of invasion, and which makes us proud,” said Ambassador Pier Francesco Zazzo.
This aid, made possible thanks to the community of Osegna (Turin) and the Lions Club Turati del Canavese, dedicated to the memory of Senator Eugenio Bozzello. Two medical ambulances will be donated to Kharkiv region and a veterinary ambulance will be donated to the animal shelter “Italia KJ2”, which is run by Italian Andrea Cisternino.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said at a party conference in Pescara that she would stand as a candidate in June’s European Parliament elections, Reuters reports.
“We want to do in Europe what we have done in Italy … to create a majority that will unite the center-right forces and send the left into opposition,” Meloni said.
Meloni’s name will be the first on ballots from Italy’s leading Brothers of Italy party in all five Italian constituencies in the European elections.
The Italian prime minister will try to bolster her party’s support, but she will not win a seat in the European Parliament if elected, the agency noted.
She has promised that she will not use “a single minute” of her time as prime minister to campaign.
According to the latest polls, Reuters notes, her party is the most popular in Italy with 27% support.
Customs inspectors have prevented an attempt to export 1.5 thousand tons of Ukrainian wheat worth UAH 9.2 million to Italy without a license using falsified documents, the press service of the State Customs Service (SCS) reported on Telegram.
“At the Mukachevo customs post, customs declarations for the export of domestic wheat (not for sowing) were submitted for customs clearance. The total weight of the goods was indicated as more than 1.5 thousand tons worth UAH 9.2 million. The seller of the goods was a Kharkiv-based company,” the statement said.
According to the State Customs Service, customs officers noticed that the goods were not licensed for export. During the inspection, it turned out that the director of the Kharkiv company resorted to tricks to circumvent the licensing of agricultural exports, and in the shipping documents he indicated an Italian company as the recipient of the goods. The export of wheat to Italy, unlike other EU countries, is not subject to licensing.
The foreign company responded to the State Customs Service’s request and denied the information about the purchase of Ukrainian wheat in a letter. For its part, the Italian customs also officially confirmed that there are no declarations in their database related to the Italian company that bought the goods.
“Two reports on violation of customs regulations under Part 1 of Article 483 of the Customs Code of Ukraine were drawn up against the head of the Kharkiv company for submitting documents containing false information about the recipient of the goods. The sanction of the article provides not only for the imposition of a fine in the amount of 50 to 100% of the value of the offense items, but also for their possible confiscation,” the State Customs Service emphasized.
PrJSC United Mining and Chemical Company (UMCC), which has taken over management of Vilnohirsk Mining and Metallurgical Plant (VGMK, Dnipro region) and Irshansk Mining and Processing Plant (IGOK, Zhytomyr region), has started selling titanium raw materials to Italy, Spain, Germany and is systematically expanding its exports.
According to the company, despite the difficulties and risks of wartime, it shipped more than 102 thousand tons of products in 2023. The planned supply volumes for 2024 are 200 thousand tons.
Yegor Perelygin, First Deputy Chairman of the Board of UMCC, quoted in the information, noted that due to effective approaches and communication with potential buyers, the company signed contracts for the supply of approximately 80 thousand tons in the fourth quarter of 2023 and the first quarter of 2024.
“We were able to attract a series of subscriptions for finished products from stable market players and open new ways to supply world-class end users. We have integrated the coordination and logistics management functions in the commercial unit, become more flexible and focused on an individual approach to strategic customers. As a result, we have opened the UMCC brand to well-known end users in Italy, Spain and Germany,” he explained.
Mr. Perelygin added that by the end of the second quarter of this year, UMCC’s rutile and zircon may become absolutely regular and key components in the raw material portfolios of major processors in Italy, Spain and Germany.
At the same time, companies in the United States and the Czech Republic remain strategic partners for UMCC’s ilmenite concentrate. We are also launching export deliveries of Irshansky GOK’s ilmenite to one of the largest end users in North America. The company plans to sell about 60 thousand tons in the near future. The company emphasizes that the supply chain and end users of these products are strictly controlled by the company and law enforcement agencies.
“Our success is due to our large team. These are more than 4,000 professionals who work in the NONstop mode. Together, we have made a good start for 2024 and are moving step by step towards our strategic goal of producing value-added products and significantly curtailing the aggressor’s influence in the markets of critical minerals and strategic materials,” summarized Perelygin.
The United Mining and Chemical Company started its actual operations in August 2014, when the Ukrainian government decided to transfer the property complexes of Vilnohirsk Mining and Metallurgical Plant (VGMK, Dnipropetrovska oblast) and Irshansk Mining and Processing Plant (IGOK, Zhytomyrska oblast) to its management. Previously, these plants were leased to Firtash’s structures. Then the company was transformed into a PJSC and then into a PrJSC.
In August 2016, the government included UMCC in the list of companies to be privatized in 2017. Its deadline was postponed several times, and the tender was disrupted twice.
UMCC used to sell its products to more than 30 countries and was one of the world’s largest producers of titanium raw materials, accounting for 4% of the global market. The company mines titanium ore.
Italian export credit agency SACE will allocate EUR1.5bn to support trade and financial operations, particularly in the health care and infrastructure sectors.
According to the website of the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine, this was discussed during the meeting between the First Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine – Minister of Economy of Ukraine Yulia Sviridenko and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Italian Republic to Ukraine Pier Francesco Dzadzo, where the Ukrainian side urged SACE to strengthen cooperation with Ukraine and expand the types of covered risks.
In addition, the export credit agency intends to support investments of Italian companies in Ukraine and provide export credits, soft loans and direct investments.
First Deputy Prime Minister noted the importance of supporting Ukrainian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which is the backbone of the national economy. She stressed that the Government also expects to intensify cooperation with the Italian Agency for Cooperation Development (AICS) to promote local economic development, job creation and support SMEs.
In addition, the sides discussed the return of Ukrainians. The provision of housing for Ukrainians remains important.
SACE is an Italian export credit agency and an active participant of the largest international organizations in the field of export credit. SACE’s activities are regulated by European Union legislation and the OECD Agreement on Officially Supported Export Credits.
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