by Marco Galluzzo, our correspondent in Algiers
The visit to Italy’s first gas supplier, who also represents European interests here
Algeria twice strategic for Italy. It sells us cheap gas and it sells us a lot. our first supplier, with an increase in flows exceeding 40% of our needs, replacing much of our imports from Russia. But Algeria, which will see the prime minister’s visit starting today – the first leg in a series of missions that will then take her to Stockholm, Berlin, Brussels, Tripoli and Kyiv – is also Africa’s first buyer of Russian-made weapons. The third in the world, after India and China. also the state that just two months ago knocked on the doors of the BRICS, the business circle that sees Moscow and Beijing at the forefront, without forgetting Chinese investments in the country destined to grow.
At Palazzo Chigi, those who know the outlines of Giorgia Meloni’s trip to Algiers, a visit that will extend over two days, have put it this way: our relations with the country have always been excellent, today they have reached the first step of a strategic scale . And Italy plays the role of an anchor for national interests and for facts trying to balance the international equidistance of Algeria and tie it as much as possible not only to Rome, but to the whole EU.
This little data and a touch of analysis in our government give the sense of the mission that begins today for Giorgia Meloni. Our Prime Minister confirms the country’s growing diplomatic, commercial and strategic investments towards Algeria in recent years. Also thanks to the historical role that ENI has played here for decades. Former Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte in 2020, President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella in 2021, former Prime Minister Mario Draghi twice in the past year, in April and July, passed through the doors of the Algerian Presidential Palace.
Meloni will arrive today and will have a multi-stage program, dinner with the Prime Minister already tonight, a visit to President Abdelmadjid Tebboune tomorrow, a walk in the gardens dedicated to ENI founder Enrico Mattei, talks with Italian entrepreneurs ( the there are always more than 200 here), even a symbolic crossing on one of our military frigates, moored in the large port of Algiers Bay. An articulated program that reflects our country’s investment and the attention we devote to bilateral relations with a first class but also very special partner.
As Emanuele Rossi wrote in Formiche, Algeria is not only Africa’s largest gas exporter, but also a key player in Europe’s energy security. Suffice it to say that just two years ago the Algerian public coffers received $20 billion annually from the sale of gas, today more than $50 billion flows in every 12 months, a number that will continue to grow. But in addition to gas, there are also dangerous relations with Beijing and Moscow. With the first, Algiers is preparing to launch numerous collaborative energy and infrastructure projects. With the second, it has excellent military relations: in 2021, only one contract was signed between the two countries, focused on buying Sukhoi fighters, worth more than $ 7 billion. For 26 US MPs, including Lisa McClain, the relationship between Algiers and Moscow poses a threat to all nations of the world.
The visit of Giorgia Meloni also takes place in this context: next to her will be the President of Confindustria Carlo Bonomi and the Managing Director of ENI Claudio De Scalzi, who will sign further agreements with the state company Sonatrach.
January 21, 2023 (change January 21, 2023 | 21:49)
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