The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Italy, Antonio Tajani, used the opening of the Conference of Italian Consuls in the World, at the FarnesinaIn Rome, he spoke to defend citizenship reform and toughen his stance against those seeking a passport without ties to the country. Addressing more than 150 consuls, he stated that "Italian citizenship is a serious matter."
In the same speech, the minister compared the recognition of citizenship to a Black Friday He said that a passport cannot be used as a shortcut to travel to Miami.
In discussing the reform, Tajani argued that the government restored "dignity and meaning to a right that must be based on an authentic bond with Italy." He acknowledged that the change displeased part of the diaspora, but described the previous situation as unacceptable.
"It was unacceptable to see Black Friday announced to grant..." (the correct word is recognize) "Italian citizenship," he said. The minister cited people who "refused to speak Italian when they went to the Consulate and demanded a passport."
The passport and Miami
The hardest part came next. For Tajani, being a citizen means "knowing the history, knowing the language, being proud to be Italian."
The minister added that citizenship “is not an instrument to go to Miami more easily because it is a European passport” and repeated that it does not serve to “make tourism easier.” Tajani delivered these statements in an ironic tone. The video does not record any reaction from the audience of consuls, who listened to him before he moved on to the next topic, the 80th anniversary of the Italian Constitution.
It is not the first time
The choice of words is not new. When presenting the decree that changed the rules, in March 28th, 2025Tajani had already used the same image of Black Friday to justify the tightening, with the focus mainly on the Italian community in South America, where Brazil concentrates the largest number of requests.
A year later, at the Farnesina Palace, the minister repeated the argument in almost the same terms. This recurrence shows that... Black FridaIt ceased to be an isolated example and became the framework with which the government describes descendants living far from Italy.
The contradiction
The speech carries a tension that is difficult to ignore. Minutes earlier, Tajani himself had called the more than 7 million citizens abroad a "very great resource" and reminded everyone that there are about 80 million people of Italian descent in the world.
The president's message Sergio MattarellaThe speaker, whose speech was read at the same ceremony, followed the same line of thought and defined the diaspora as "human and professional heritage."
