Italy maintains an open and pragmatic dialogue with the United States on issues of strategic importance, from international trade to the stability of Africa, the Balkans and the wider Mediterranean, to the so-called "Cotton Road" to India. Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said this during question time in the Senate. "In the ongoing dialogues with Washington," Tajani stressed, “we will continue to work for transatlantic unity and the protection of our political, security and economic interests, always with friendship and determination”. A confrontation that, according to the minister, takes place "with our heads held high", with the aim of strengthening Italy's role in the international scenario.