IAI participates in a cycle of seminars on the OSCE for Italian universities

Vienna - Italy's Permanent Mission to the OSCE promotes a cycle of seminars for Italian universities

Ambassador Stefano Baldi presented to the OSCE Permanent Council the cycle of seminars on the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) for Italian universities, promoted by the Italian Permanent Mission to the OSCE, which took place in the first half of the year.

The cycle of seminars, entitled "The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) as a model for multilateral regional diplomacy", was held in English from March to May and consisted of 20 hours of training. It was conducted by videoconference in the form of lectures on the workings of the OSCE and workshops/interactive sessions on specific topics ("case studies"), enabling participants to learn about the role and strengths of the Organization.

Ninety students from thirteen Italian universities actively participated in the initiative: Perugia, Roma Tre, Siena, Pavia, Bologna, Ca' Foscari of Venice, Florence, Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna of Pisa, Trento, Bocconi of Milan, Luiss Guido Carli of Rome, Trieste and Padua. A new addition for 2023, the initiative welcomed the participation of students from the University of San Marino.

Seminar speakers included diplomats from the Permanent Mission of Italy to the OSCE and from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Italian officials working at the OSCE, researchers from the Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI) involved in the New Med Research Network project monitoring developments on the OSCE Mediterranean Partnership, other experts from the Organization and university professors. The cycle concluded with an interactive round table discussion on the role and perspectives of the OSCE, in which several Permanent Representatives of other OSCE participating States took part as speakers.

As said by Amb. Stefano Baldi: "The aim of the initiative, now in its second year, is to promote understanding of the role and activities of the OSCE and to strengthen co-operation between diplomacy and academia. With its pragmatic approach, the cycle also provided an opportunity to explore aspects and tools of multilateral diplomacy in the specific context of the OSCE."

Vienna, 23 June 2023