170 / 540
169
2006
•
Declaration of intent to enter an agreement for the promotion and protection of investments be-
tween countries. This agreement was never enforced, because it failed to be ratified by both the Italian Par-
liament and the Dominican Congress. Negotiations for a scientific and cultural cooperation agreement are
finalized. It is signed, ratified, and enacted in 2019.
2013
•
In accordance with Decree No. 95 of 2012, the Italian government decides to streamline its network
of foreign embassies, consulates, and cultural institutions by closing a number of them. This action was part of
an effort to reduce expenditures in order to implement the government’s budget review plan.
2014
•
The Italian embassy in Santo Domingo is closed on December 31, and the Dominican Republic’s
consular district is relocated to the Italian embassy in Panama. The Dominican government certifies the Pan-
amanian ambassador as concurrent ambassador to the Dominican Republic. The Italian embassy’s closure
sparked what was likely the worst diplomatic crisis between both nations. The Dominican government could
not fathom why a country that had been so culturally and economically influential would cut off diplomatic
relations, especially considering howmuch of the Dominican economy was controlled by individuals of Italian
heritage. As a result, the local Italian community immediately organized protests, having found themselves
effectively stranded and dependent on the Italian embassy in Panama to issue all of their identification papers.
This was a significant problem, given that there were more than 11,000
4
Italians registered and residing in the
Dominican Republic, according to Italian authorities. However, according to Dominican authorities, another
50,000 unregistered Italians also lived in the country. A local Italian association, “Casa de Italia,” assumed a
leadership role in the protests and became a platform through which Dominican and Italian officials could be
prompted to reopen the embassy. The Italian courts initiated judicial proceedings to annul the decree issued
by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which mandated the closure of the embassy. On June 25, 2015, Sec-
tion 3T of the Lazio TAR (Administrative Court), issued Ruling No. 9371, which officially acknowledged the
appeals made by the commissions and Italian citizens against Italy’s Presidential Decree of June 25, 2014.
It was amid this turmoil that Dominican President Danilo Medina traveled to Italy on September 29, 2014 to
attend meetings of the FAO. While there, he requested meetings with various Italian institutions to discuss
the matter of the embassy reopening. As discussed in chapter 40, President Medina met with then-Undersecre-
tary to the Presidency of the Council and later Minister for Sport, Luca Lotti, to demand the reopening of the
embassy in Santo Domingo, citing the long history of political, diplomatic and economic relations between
both countries.
2015
•
The Italian Council of State issues Ruling No. 8257. The Presidency of the Council of Ministers,
represented by the Italian Attorney General against Asociación Casa de Italia, Inc., dismissed the case brought
forth by the Italians living in the Dominican Republic.
2016
•
In October, the Italian deputy minister of Foreign Affairs, Mario Giro, visited the Dominican Re-
public and held meetings during which the reopening of the embassy was once again requested. To support
its argument, the Dominican government pointed to the needs of its Italian residents, as well as the country’s
need for trade relations and investments. Both of these factors bolstered each other, as the country was expe-
riencing an average annual growth of up to 7% until 2016, and much of its economically powerful class was
of Italian descent.
On April 4, 2016, the Italian government decided to reopen its Santo Domingo embassy, setting the date
for February 1, 2017.
2017
•
In January, the Council of Ministers appoints career diplomat Andrea Canepari as Ambassador Ex-
traordinary and Plenipotentiary, thus establishing the highest level of Italian representation alongside the rees-
DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS. PART ONE. NOTES FOR A CHRONOLOGY: 1844-2017