On 23 July, the Italian Ambassador to Dublin, Nicola Faganello, took part in a ceremony organized by Meath County Council (northeast Ireland) to celebrate the twinning initiative between Italy and County Meath, held as part of Ireland’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union.
The ceremony, which opened with the raising of the Irish, European Union, and Italian flags, was attended by Ambassador Faganello; Sarah Reilly, Cathaoirleach of Meath County Council; Helen McEntee, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade; Thomas Byrne, Minister of State for European Affairs and Defence; Elizabeth McCullough, Ambassador of Ireland to Italy; and Kieran Kehoe, Chief Executive of Meath County Council.
At the conclusion of the ceremony, Cathaoirleach Sarah Reilly planted a tree together with the Italian and Irish authorities present as a symbolic expression of the strong bond of friendship and cooperation between Italy and County Meath.
In his remarks, Ambassador Faganello emphasized that the twinning initiative is firmly rooted in the longstanding cultural, religious, and educational ties between Italy and County Meath. In particular, he recalled the figure of Saint Columbanus, the Irish missionary monk who founded the Abbey of Bobbio, near Piacenza, in AD 614.
Ambassador Faganello also highlighted the strength of bilateral relations in the fields of culture and education, noting the many local students studying Italian at Ratoath College in County Meath, as well as the ongoing exchange programmes with a partner school in Parma, which help strengthen ties between the younger generations of the two countries.
The speeches delivered by the participating authorities also repeatedly reaffirmed the importance of citizens and local communities in the European integration process and in promoting EU values. They stressed that investing in a strong and lasting partnership at the local level not only reinforces the friendship between Italy and County Meath—and Ireland more broadly—but also makes a meaningful contribution to the wider European project.
Photo credit: Meath County Council.
