OREANDA-NEWS. December 4, 2009. A meeting of Russian-Italian Forum-Dialogue within the Framework of Civil Societies “Russia and Italy in the Post-Crisis Europe” was held in Rome.

Vnesheconombank Chairman Vladimir Dmitriev is a Co-Chairman of the Forum-Dialogue on the Russian side and Todini Finanziaria President Luisa Todini – on the Italian side. Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini took part in the opening ceremony. The meeting’s participants discussed pressing issues of Russian-Italian cooperation in the post-crisis period including those of implementing major high-technology and infrastructure projects; cooperation in power engineering, small and medium-sized enterprises as well as cooperation in the field of culture, education, mass media, religious and inter-confessional interaction.

In attendance of the meeting were Russia’s Minister of Industry and Trade Victor Khristenko, Italy’s Minister of Economic Development Claudio Skaiola, Special Presidential Representative for International Cultural Cooperation Mikhail Shvydkoy. Politicians, notable figures of culture, science, education, and representatives of big business of the two countries also took part in the meeting.

Russian-Italian Forum-Dialogue within the Framework of Civil Societies is aimed at establishing new promising lines of cooperation between the two countries in various fields as well as creating an infrastructure of bilateral relations at a non-government level in the field of economy, science and education, cultural and humanitarian exchanges.