Celebrations for the 70th anniversary of the Messina Conference begin

Celebrations for the seventieth anniversary of the historic Messina and Taormina Conference that marked the start of the European integration process began today. Promoted by the Sicilian Region, in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Taormina Arte Sicilia Foundation and the Municipalities of Messina and Taormina, with the support of the European Commission and under the High Patronage of the European Parliament, the initiative takes place within the XV edition of Taobuk – Taormina International Book Festival and brings together Foreign Ministers of European countries, representatives of institutions and intellectuals from all over Europe to reflect, starting from this anniversary, on the future, challenges and opportunities of the European Union.

The opening day began today at Palazzo Zanca, in Messina, the historic seat of the 1955 Conference, with a public meeting in the presence of the Foreign Ministers and representatives of the countries that signed the final Report of that time (France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg), the Presidency Trio of the European Union, the President of the Sicilian Region Renato Schifani and the mayors of Messina and Taormina, Federico Basile and Cateno De Luca. A moment of strong symbolic value, which recalls the origins of the European path and relaunches the dialogue between States in a time of great global challenges.

“I am a sovereignist of Europe. Europe is always a bearer of peace, perhaps it could play a stronger role if Europeans had always acted together in recent years. A more cohesive policy is needed, but it seems that in this phase the messages are positive, we saw at the G7 the large European countries have taken a very clear position with their allies. If we think we are alone we are destined to be marginalized and defeated. So there is no other path than the European one. Some people think of relaunching national sovereignism, as if Italy alone in the era of globalization could face India, the USA, China. I believe that Italy, but no other European country, could face the challenges of the 2000s, we do not have the strength and the ability because the world has changed. The only possibility to protect the national interests of 60 million Italians is to put these interests together with those of other European countries. Otherwise we are destined to irrelevance", said Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Antonio Tajani.

“Celebrating the 70th anniversary of the Messina and Taormina Conference within Taobuk,” said Antonella Ferrara, President and Artistic Director of the Festival, “means reaffirming the role of culture as the foundation of European identity. It is in culture that common values, the ability to imagine together, the will to build bridges and not walls are rooted. In a time marked by crisis and disintegration, critical thinking and dialogue represent the true strategic resource for the Europe of the future.”

“Exactly seventy years after the signing of the historic Treaty of Europe of Messina, the city returns to the center of international attention, with a solemn institutional celebration that pays homage to one of the founding moments of the European integration process,” declared Sergio Bonomo, Extraordinary Commissioner of the Taormina Arte Sicilia Foundation. "In the presence of EU representatives, historians and citizens, we are celebrating not only an anniversary, but the profound meaning of a visionary choice by the then Minister of Messina Gaetano Martino: to build a single state, Europe. The Treaty was the spark that ignited a dream, today more alive than ever. But it is up to all of us European citizens to renew it every day, with courage and responsibility. This celebration is not only a return to the origins, but an opportunity to relaunch a public reflection on which Europe wants to build in a time marked by new global challenges: climate change, digital transformations, geopolitical tensions, a single State. The Taormina Arte Sicilia Foundation, grateful for the role assigned by the Sicilian Region, inherent in the organization of the event, synergistically shared with Taobuk, welcomes the participants"