Paolo Gentiloni is the current Prime Minister of Italy who assumed office recently on 12 December 2016. Prior to holding PM’s office, Gentiloni held the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2014-2016) and Ministry of Communications (2006-2008). Paolo is also known as a quiet and gentleman Prime Minister.
Early Life and Education
Born on 22 November 1954, Gentiloni grew up in the capital city of Italy, Rome with two siblings. For early education, he went to the Classical Lyceum Torquato Tasso. Then, he attended La Sapienza University for an undergraduate degree in political sciences.
Personal Life
Gentiloni is a married man. He tied the knot with Emanuela Mauro in 1988. The couple has remained together ever since i.e. around three decades.
Paolo is personally related to prominent Italian leader Vincenzo Ottorino Gentiloni and former Prime Minister Giovanni Giolitti. Likewise, he is a Nobile of Filottrano, Cingoli, and Macerata.
Career
Professionally a journalist, Gentiloni entered the political world as a member of student movement led by Mario Capanna. Alongside an entry into politics, Gentiloni was actively seeking for better opportunities in journalism sector. He was even appointed the director of a Italian newspaper, La Nuova Ecologia. Paolo’s successful journalism led him to become acquainted with numerous political figures, including Francesco Rutelli.
Starting in 1993, Gentiloni ventured into mainstream politics by campaigning for Rutelli’s bid for Rome’s Mayor. As Rutelli won the election, Paolo was subsequently appointed as Jubilee and Tourism Councillor. After holding the office for a few years, he ran for a Parliamentary position. Having won people’s will, he successfully served as a Member of Parliament from 2001-2006. He was also the Chairman of Broadcasting Services Watchdog Committee from 2005 to 2006.
Leaving Parliamentary Position, Gentiloni served as the Minister of Communications for Romano Prodi’s government. In the meantime, he helped build foundation of the Democratic Party. Following Paolo’s 2008 re-election to the parliament, he held office for five years and even placed a bid for Mayor of Rome. Unfortunately, Gentiloni wasn’t already Rome’s first choice at that moment.
In 2013 general election, Paolo Gentiloni won a seat in the Chamber of Deputies. However, the following year, he entered Matteo Renzi’s administration cabinet as the Minister of Foreign Affairs. As a diplomat for Italian Government, Gentiloni said that Italy might not tolerate the presence of Islamic terrorism a few hours away.
Similarly, Gentiloni met diplomats from Mexico and Cuba in March 2015 to discuss bilateral ties. In December 2015, he also organized Rome peace conference which hosted Russia, US, UN, and Libya. Likewise, Paolo negotiated with the Dutch government to share term at UN Security Council.
As Matteo Renzi resigned from the post of Prime Minister, Paolo Gentiloni was the next best candidate to form a new government. So, under the request of the President, he took the leadership on 11 December 2016 and formed a coalition government of Democrats and Christian Democratic Popular Area. Following the formation of a new cabinet, Gentiloni won 368 out of 473 confidence votes in the Chamber of Deputies.
Since holding the office, he visited Paris to meet French counterpart, Francois Hollande. Likewise, he has also made a deal with Libyan authorities to halt migration. He also met Angela Merkel two weeks ago.
Trump and Gentiloni
Donald Trump and Gentiloni are the newly sworn-in prominent world leaders. They haven’t yet made comments about each other. Anyway, Italy and US are two old allies.
