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Dec 31,2006 - Jan7,2006 |
Italy and Canada, friends who do not chat
Interview with Ambassador Gabriele Sardo on bilateral relations
By Angelo Persichilli
Originally Published: 2006-05-14
Toronto as a landing strip in Canada for Italian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as venue of choice for the establishment of a "top quality Italian school." These ideas appear in the second part of our interview with Italy's new Ambassador to Canada, Gabriele Sardo. The diplomat draws an unflattering picture of Italian-Canadian relations, underscoring the well-known closeness of the two countries but also the lack of communication that all too often marks these relations, "like two friends who like each other but do not chat." Ambassador Sardo advocates a wave of renewal that could refresh these relations, "without letting the presence of 1.3 million Canadians of Italian origins condition the issue." He also speaks of the attitude of some media that force "an image halfway between nice and irrelevant" upon Italy.
However, if things have to change - says the ambassador - in addition to smartness and creativity, proper resources are needed from Rome. "I won't even mention financial resources, since there are hardly any left." Here is the full text of our interview.
Ambassador Sardo, you've been in Canada for a few months now. What is your opinion on relations with Italy?
"Relations between Italy and Canada present no problems, since our two countries are dissimilar as regards cultural and political roots, but very much close, in fact, as regards international scenarios. This does not mean, however, that we talk a lot; it is rather rare. I'm not saying that we should stand shoulder to shoulder, but apparently nobody wonders why there is so little presence. I got this - almost physical - feeling after only two weeks here. In short, these two countries do not actually talk to each other."
Why may this be?
"Not because of ill will or differences, but of several conditions rooted in history. Canada is neither Britain nor the United States. It surfaced rather slowly on the world scene. I also believe that staying out of the limelight was a good thing for Canada. This country has had the immense luck of never losing. Those who have sometimes lost see things one way, those who've always won see them another. This is understandable, but there is no reason, in today's world, not to exploit such strong complementariness."
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