Regional Practices and Challenges of Italy’s Climate Diplomacy

Abstract

Climate change poses multiple challenges to Italy’s ecosystems, economic structure, and social stability, elevating the status of climate governance within the national strategy. Italy regards the Mediterranean coastal countries and the African continent as the core regions of its climate diplomacy, actively participating in and promoting climate cooperation and emissions reduction efforts in neighboring areas. However, there remains a significant gap between Italy’s strategic vision for climate diplomacy and its practical implementation. Domestic political instability, economic resource constraints, and the slow pace of energy transition have collectively exposed clear deficiencies in its climate diplomacy regarding issue prioritization, policy coherence, and implementation capacity. Under the dual pressures of a global economic downturn and the European energy crisis, the contradiction between Italy’s capabilities and its vision has become more pronounced. The current government’s prioritization of “energy security first” and “economic development first” has objectively marginalized climate diplomacy within the national foreign strategy.