The 12th edition of the Mediterranean and Black Sea Symposium was presented yesterday in the historic library of Palazzo Marina in Rome. Regional Seapower Symposium, event scheduled at the historic and beautiful venue of the Arsenale of Venice, from 15 to 18 October 2019.
The Symposium, given the growing numbers increasingly appreciated by marinas around the world, is a unique opportunity to meet and dialogue on global security and on aspects related to the "enlarged" Mediterranean.
“Today the interpretation of maritime power is no longer only economic and military, but also cultural and diplomatic. This is the message we want to try to convey in these 4 days ", the comment of the Chief of Staff of the Navy, team admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, presenting the event.
This year's theme is Shaping our Navies for the Blue Century, that is, how to meet the challenges in the maritime domain in this century. Challenges very different from those of the past.
The aim of the forum will be to "Highlight the need to develop a more inclusive and balanced approach within the maritime community, because safer seas correspond to greater progress and security for the country and the world".
It is a request for security based on precise data: 80% of all life on the planet develops in the seas and oceans while today, according to a recent report by the "Italian Maritime Economy"80% of the goods travel by sea. And 263 is the submarine communication backbone along 1 million km, that is the 95% of communications.
Today the Mediterranean is decidedly enlarged, because even distant countries still have interests in the area. This was recalled by division admiral Pier Federico Bisconti, head of the 3rd department of the Navy's general staff.
"Despite being at the 12th edition, the idea was born in the 1996, when in Newport, in the USA, in the conclusion of the International Seapower Symposium, the need for a regional maritime forum for the Mediterranean and the Black Sea was felt", explained the admiral. Since then, the Navy has organized The Regional Seapower Symposium every two years in Venice.
This year the adhesions have been many. So far, 60 Marines have been confirmed and of these 41 will have the presence of their respective Chiefs of Staff, as well as numerous institutional, political, economic and academic representatives directly involved or simply interested in the subject.
The Symposium, is a conceptual platform in which to be able to dialogue at different levels, seeking the involvement of all those who have an interest in the sea, including international and trade organizations such as fishermen. "The strength of this event is to make countries with different perspectives and interests sit at the same table", commented Admiral Bisconti. In fact, among the participating and dialoguing nations there will be the United States, Russia and China ... And dialogue, development of mutual trust and cooperation are among the keywords of the XII Symposium.
It is therefore necessary to continue to talk about maritime transport, a concept that should play a fundamental role in the economic and social policies of states. Only in Italy the maritime sector employs over 350 thousand workers, an 3% of GDP that generates 44 billion. Unfortunately, above all in our country, there is no sensitivity and awareness of its importance. The Symposium also serves this purpose, that is to "dissolve the fog" around the sea.
"We want to spread at all levels the need to understand that our well-being and safety come from the sea". Some nations have understood this better than we do: France, for example, which does not have maritime borders like ours but since the 2009 has a serious national strategy in place in this regard. While the United States, like China, focus heavily on maritime safety.
The symposium will therefore discuss bets that will have to be faced at sea, including maritime trade, fishing, exploitation of underwater riches, protection of national interests.
The new challenges are no longer just military, or showdowns between states as they once were. Even today, recent history teaches us how many nations have a personalized attitude of international maritime law, which leads to the territorialization of the sea. If many states evoke international law and continue to declare areas of their own exclusive, including fishing, without confronting others, this can create tensions, because the open sea narrows, it is no longer inclusion but exclusion, with foreseeable consequences. in a world that instead needs to dialogue and share. This too will be a topic of the Venice symposium.
The works will be divided into three sessions, inside the Arsenale Squadratori hall.
October 16 will start with the international law of the sea, from the Montego Bay Convention to the hypothesis of a new model of the rule of law at sea, its commercial and military advantages and its operational impact on the Navy.
The second session, on the other hand, will focus on technological innovations for modern ships, the opportunities of IT modularity, multipurpose platforms and unmanned maritime systems. A bit of a journey between tradition and innovation.
To conclude the work, there will be a debate on the evolution of maritime domination in the Blue Century, which can guarantee welfare and security to society. Here too, challenges and opportunities.
The ship school Amerigo Vespucci finally, it will host a series of multilateral meetings, where the Navy promotes a shared and sustainable approach to the maritime universe.
As stated by the Chief of Staff of the Navy, Adm. Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, "Dialogue and cooperation will be the common denominator of the event, thus constituting an important opportunity to reaffirm the value of maritime relations".
