The 13th Italy-Algeria Bilateral Committee took place in recent days. The works began on 30 November at Palazzo “Guidoni”, headquarters of Segredifesa, and continued on 1 December with a visit to the Leonardo production site in Vergiate (VA).
The activity was co-chaired by General Luciano Portolano, Secretary General of Defense and National Director of Armaments, and General Mohamed Salah Benbicha, Secretary General of the Ministry of National Defense of the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria.
The meeting took place in an atmosphere of mutual satisfaction and shared intent. Topics related to cooperation in the field of materials and equipment were addressed, with reference also to the development of the respective industrial sectors of Defense. All the activities agreed under the previous bilateral agreements have been completed thanks to the continuous work of bilateral working groups and the collaboration of Italian industries in the sector, such as, for example, Fincantieri, Leonardo, MBDA Italia, Elettronica and Rheinmetall Italia.
After bringing to the counterpart the greetings of the Minister of Defense Guido Crosetto, General Portolano underlined the importance of the North African country as a strategic partner in the southern flank of Europe and the Atlantic Alliance, also in light of the current international dynamics that are part of a general framework characterized by challenges and threats related to Russian aggression against Ukraine, the energy and financial crisis, migration flows and climate change. Afterwards, the General underlined the role played by Algeria in the Mediterranean area in order to strengthen peace and stability in the region, and how Italy and Algeria are linked by solid friendships and an important bilateral collaboration in many fields, including that of Defense.
The Algerian delegation renewed its sentiments of esteem and friendship towards Italy, considered as an important partner of reference, from the point of view of military equipment, both for the high reliability of Italian products and for the willingness of Italian industries to start collaborations that include cooperation through exchange, technology transfer and crew training, of technical staff and workers in Algeria. In particular, the Algerian delegation expressed its heartfelt thanks and appreciation to the excellence of the Italian aerospace, defense and security industry, now better known in Algeria thanks to the ongoing collaboration activities.
The Segredifesa delegation confirmed the commitment and willingness of the Italian Defense to support its Algerian counterpart in the process of any future acquisitions of national production systems, through a possible technological sharing and industrial know-how. Particular emphasis was placed on the Joint Venture between Leonardo and EPIC/EDIA (Etablissement Public De Caractère Industriel Et Commercial / Etablissement De Developpemoent Des Industries Aeronautiques) at the Setif site. in Algeria. In this regard, Gen. Portolano stressed the opportunity to give maximum impetus to the activity, to ensure that it becomes an important starting point for future industrial collaborations in the helicopter production sector. Particular attention was paid to the commitments made by the Algerian side with Leonardo regarding the finalization of the basic agreements, including the important order of the first 7 AW-139 helicopters. Both parties have strongly hoped to formalize this part by the first half of ’23.
The meeting then touched on the potential collaboration agreement between Fincantieri and the Algerian shipyard ECRN (Établissement De Costruction Et De Reparation Navale) of Mers el Kébir (Oran), aimed at developing a potential joint shipbuilding program, which would allow the Algerian side to acquire technical and managerial know-how.
Subsequently, the Algerian delegation gave voice to the strong national interest in the New Exploration and Escort Helicopter (NEES) – AW-249, produced by Leonardo. Il Gen. Portolano thanked his counterpart for their attention and for accepting the invitation to visit Leonardo’s Vergiate plant where the aircraft is produced. The NEES was designed according to the technical specifications derived directly from the operational use of the previous aircraft (AH-129D) in the Theaters of Operations. The new system allows to operate easily and effectively in the full spectrum of land operations thanks to the presence of state-of-the-art systems and equipment. The new platform, conceived with a modern maintenance philosophy, allows, moreover, the reduction of logistics support costs compared to the previous version.
The meeting ended with the commitment of the parties to continue cooperation, setting among the objectives for 2023 a series of meetings aimed at increasing trade and cooperation between the two countries. The Bilateral Committee originates from the agreement on cooperation in the field of defence between the Government of the Italian Republic and the Government of the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria, signed in Rome on 15 May 2003. Subsequently, the two nations signed several protocols, interministerial conventions and intergovernmental agreements.
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