The President of Italy, Sergio Mattarella, stated that his country is “fascined” with Brazil, which welcomes a head of state from the European nation for the first time in 24 years.
“The Italians want Brazilians well,” said the president in an interview with CNN Brasil.
“The fascination that Brazil holds for Italians is very high, as is their knowledge of Brazilian culture and music. The many ways in which Italian and Brazilian art have grown together are also familiar to me, and this has made many places in Brazil that I have visited seem like places I already knew,” he added.
Mattarella has already visited Brasília, Porto Alegre and São Paulo and visits Rio de Janeiro this Thursday (18) and Salvador on Friday (19). “The sensitivity that unites us makes Italians in Brazil and Brazilians in Italy feel at home”, he highlighted.
During the interview, the president also recalled that 2024 is a “significant” year for bilateral relations due to the 150th anniversary of Italian immigration to Brazil and the 80th anniversary of the arrival in Italy of the Brazilian Expeditionary Force (FEB).
“I expressed the recognition of the Italian Republic for Brazilian help in liberating Nazi and fascist oppression in Europe”, he highlighted.
The topic had already been addressed by Mattarella in a joint speech with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in Brasília, last Monday (15). (HANDLE)
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