By Giovanni Legorano
ROME (AA) - Italy and Saudi Arabia on Monday signed an agreement to promote investments and economic cooperation between the two countries in sectors deemed strategic by the two countries, the Italian Industry Ministry said.
Italy’s Industry Minister Adolfo Urso and Saudi Investment Minister Khalid Al-Falih signed the memorandum of understanding in Milan, launching the first Italy-Saudi investment forum.
“The MoU is meant to support dialogue between institutions and companies interested in the promotion of investments between the two countries and encourage the cooperation on direct investments,” a ministry statement said.
It added that the agreement aims to support investors in all phases of the projects if “they have been indicated of strategic importance for one of the countries.”
More than 1,200 companies are taking part in the forum in Milan, around 700 of which are participating remotely. More than 150 Saudi companies are taking part in the forum, the ministry said.
Representatives of Italy’s energy and defense giants, such as Eni, Enel and Leonardo, as well as of Italy’s two largest banks Intesa Sanpaolo and UniCredit are also attending the forum.
During the bilateral meeting between the Italian and Saudi ministers, Al-Falih invited Urso to visit Riyadh “to consolidate the cooperation between the two countries and facilitate the collaboration among companies,” the statement said.