30 October 2009 - NATO Parliamentarians Discuss Food Security, Global Economic Recession and Transatlantic Technological Cooperation in Italy

From 19-23 October members of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly’s Sub‑Committees on Transatlantic Economic Relations (ESCTER) and Energy and Environmental Security (STCEES) met with a range of political leaders, officials from international organizations and experts including the Chairman of the Senate Finance and Treasury Standing Committee, experts from the NATO Defence College (NDC), key officials at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and professors at Bocconi University in Milan. The delegation also visited the European Space Agency (ESA), Italy’s premier defence company Finmeccanica, the NATO Undersea Research Centre (NURC) in La Spezia and the La Spezia Port Authority, and they met with leaders of the Universal Exposition which will be held in Milan in 2015.

Ms. Josette Sheeran, Executive Director of the WFP, explored the tight link between food security and stability and the vital mission the WFP plays in feeding millions of people every day - operations that are funded on a voluntary basis. The goal this year is to feed 100 million people, but funding shortfalls arising out of the global financial crisis could render this goal elusive. Sheeran discussed the vital role that the WFP is playing in Afghanistan and paid tribute to her colleagues tragically killed and injured in the recent attack on the organization’s offices in Islamabad, Pakistan.   Putting the current food crisis into a longer term perspective, officials at the FAO suggested that food production will have to increase by 70% over the next 40 years to feed a world population which will peak at 9.1 billion by mid-century. Parliamentarians learned that feeding the planet in a sustainable manner will be a central theme of the 2015 Universal Exposition that will be held in Milan.

In meetings in Milan and Rome respectively, Professor Franco Bruni of Bocconi University and Senator Mario Baldassarri discussed the financial crisis, its global implications and the specific forms it has assumed in Italy. Both called for fundamental reforms in the global financial architecture, while recognizing the need for macro-economic adjustments in countries that are either saving or spending excessively. Each suggested that leading countries will need to forego some degree of national control over economic policy-making in order to achieve global financial stability, but they also acknowledged the daunting political and institutional challenges in building such an order.

During discussions at the NATO Defence College, Dr. Karl-Heinz Kamp discussed his work on the Alliance ’s New Strategic Concept and laid out the key dilemmas the Allies confront as they define a strategic vision for the new century. The visit to NURC included briefings on research into NATO's operational and transformation requirements, potential solutions to maritime security problems and harbour protection. Lorenzo Forcieri, Head of La Spezia’s Port Authority, led a tour of that vital port and explained its strategic and economic importance to Italy and the Alliance. Finally, at Finmeccanica’s Headquarters, parliamentarians were given a demonstration of an advanced lead-in fighter trainer - theM-346 "Master” aircraft. While at ESA, developments in Europe ’s space capabilities and possible collaboration with NATO in defence and security areas were discussed.