On October 2-3, Odessa was the first stop on the mission to Ukraine of a delegation of Italian parliamentarians, members of the Cooperation Group between the Chamber of Deputies and the Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian parliament). The choice to visit Odessa first is unusual according to the diplomatic protocol. All foreign delegations usually go first to the capital. So far, it has always been like this in Ukraine too. But perhaps, for Italy, Odessa has a special value.
The Italian delegation was led by the vice president of the Chamber of Deputies, Giorgio Mulè, who chairs the Italy-Ukraine Cooperation Group. He was joined by MPs Ugo Cappellacci, Anastasio Carrà, Giangiacomo Calovini, Marco Pellegrini, Lia Quartapelle Procopio.
"In Odessa you can breathe the air of Italy for historical and cultural regions, the commitment is to ensure that there continues to be a scent of freedom", Mulè said upon his arrival.
Italy has a predilection for Odessa, because the founder of the city Josè De Ribas was Neapolitan and the community of Italian immigrants from the then Kingdom of the Two Sicilies were the first economic and cultural backbone of the city. One of the main streets in the centre is dedicated to him. This historical link influenced the choice of the Italian Government to allocate 45 million euros for the restoration of the city, starting with the Orthodox Cathedral of Odessa, hit by a Russian missile in July 2023. But part of these funds will also be dedicated to the development of the region and to support other institutions important to the population, as declared by the new Italian ambassador to Kyiv Carlo Formosa, during his visit in September. This investment plan is part of the Memorandum of the “Italian Tutelage of Odessa” signed by the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs Antonio Tajani and the Ukrainian Minister for the Development of Territories and Infrastructures Vasyl Shkurakov, at the international conference in Berlin, on June 11, 2024.
In fact, during the first institutional meeting with the Italian delegation, the Governor of the Odesa Region Oleg Kiper reminded the guests of how Italy has offered to rebuild one of the pavilions of a regional hospital:
«At the previous meeting with the Ambassador of the Italian Republic in Ukraine, we handed over the project for the restoration of the Odessa Regional Children's Clinical Hospital. Today, the Italian side has already given preliminary consent to the reconstruction of one of the buildings of the medical facility», he said.
After the first meeting with the Region, the second was with the symbol of the city's culture, the Opera House, where the Italians were welcomed by the General Director Nadia Babich. The visit was a must because the parliamentarians could not forget the concert of the Odessa Opera Theatre Orchestra in Rome, in the Hemicycle Hall of the Chamber of Deputies, on February 22, the second anniversary of the large-scale Russian invasion. The General Director thanked the support of the Italian Embassy, the Puccini Foundation and the Italian Honorary Consul in Odessa Vladislav Shtamburg to the musical projects of the Theatre. In addition, Nadia Babich informed the guests that, thanks to the work of the musical impresario Enrico Copedè, who lives in Ukraine and continued to work even during the war, the Theatre will put on stage the premieres in Ukraine of Puccini’s operas “Gianni Schicchi” and “Suor Angelica”, in autumn 2024. As a welcome gift, an exclusive short concert of Italian arias was offered to the prestigious guests. Babich emphasised that 90% of the theatre’s playbill consists of music by Italian composers, confirming the influence of Italian culture in Odessa. At the end of the meeting, President Mulè presented the Director with the medal of representation of the Italian Parliament.
The arrival of the Italian politicians coincides with a moment of great suffering for the Ukrainian city. In addition to the constant attacks from the Russian sky and blackouts, the city is currently shocked by a political attack by nationalist Ukrainians on its history and multicultural tradition. With an administrative act, the Governor has erased the names of 83 streets and initiated the removal of 19 historical monuments of the city. Along with symbols of the Soviet and Russian imperial era, unbearable in times of aggression by Moscow, all the writers of the great Jewish tradition of Odessa and other personalities tied to the cosmopolitan culture of Odessa have also been removed.
This issue was addressed by the mayor of Odessa Gennady Trukhanov, who is against these measures, during the second institutional meeting of the Italian delegation’s agenda. According to the Mayor's press office, Italians expressed solidarity with the inhabitants of Odessa in the defense of their cultural tradition, thanks to which the city has become a UNESCO heritage site.
“History evolves, so you have to grow with it and accept its different moments. In Italy during fascism many works were written, houses were built. But this is not a reason not to visit them and much less demolish them. Art does not belong to anyone. It belongs to the world,” stressed President Mulè.
The delegation’s programme was completed with a visit to the Caritas Spes Odessa reception centre for needy families, which refers to the Catholic Church, with Italian volunteers from “Condivisione Fra i Popoli”, an NGO of the “Pope John XXIII” Association of Rimini, and a ritual inspection of the restoration work of the Orthodox Cathedral, with Italian funds.
This mission revealed a rich menu of Italian initiatives all concentrated in the strategic port city of the Black Sea. Moreover, in September 2023, an honorary consulate was inaugurated. An Italian diplomatic representation in Odessa had been missing since the Second World War.
One wonders whether there is a real Italian strategy on Odessa or whether it is a coincidence of several initiatives. For example, Denmark has officially declared the plan to concentrate all Danish private and public investments and future reconstruction projects in the port of Mykolaiv.
It is too early to glimpse such an Italian plan, although the recent announcement of a project by the Fincantieri group in Ukrainian shipbuilding goes in the same direction, since the shipyards are close to Odessa.
In any case, it is refreshing for Odessa to see the return of Italy through diplomatic visits, cultural and humanitarian projects.
