H. E. Alireza Jahangiri, Ambassador of Iran. The Ambassador of H.E. Dr.  Alireza Jahangiri, met once again with the media in a press meeting breakfast at his residency. Early in the morning and before the start his agenda of the day he asked several journalists on their opinion of the Iran nuclear deal and the recent view of the United States on it. With this, he began the conversation one of the most important subjects of contemporary politics, namely the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). This nuclear deal, according to Jahangiri, is a great achievement in the international arena as it can be viewed as a triumph of diplomacy over confrontation. Therefore, the deal should be maintained by all means. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has confirmed Iran’s commitment to JCPOA over ten times, therefore indicating that Iran is fulfilling all the required obligations. However, as stated by the Ambassador, “the government of the United States has wrong interpretations on the deal, as it regards it as an economic deal rather than a non-proliferation tool. Therefore, it is rather about security vs. insecurity instead of access to markets. With this increasing hostility and uncertainty from the side of the United States of America, skepticism about the continuity of America’s participation in the agreement is heightened.” Nevertheless, the main concern for Iran is cautioning European countries against wavering on issues that go beyond of the scope of the nuclear agreement. For history not to repeat itself, it is imperative that Europe helps Iran to ensure that the agreement will be maintained. Before the talks that lead to the 2015 nuclear deal, Iran already negotiated with Britain, France and Germany, who then persuaded the American president at the time, George W. Bush, to give diplomacy a chance. As a return, Iran was asked to temporarily freeze on uranium-enrichment-related activities to establish confidence. “Two years after negotiation, European states, under pressure from the US, were demanding that Iran should abandon all enrichment activities. Following this, the negotiation talks fell apart without any result. Following sporadic talks, in 2013, negotiations began once again, this time directly with the United States. The point on ending uranium enrichment within Iranian soil was not mentioned anymore, therefore also leading to successful negotiations. The nuclear deal that was established out of this created a good opportunity for cooperation between European states and Iran. “ According to Jahangiri, Europe should not pander to Washington’s determination to focus the shift on what he considers to be an unnecessary crisis as this will only bring back dynamics of mistrust and insecurities. The Islamic Republic of Iran considers any non-nuclear sanctions against itself to only further complicate the situation, therefore also having a detrimental impact on the JCPOA. In fact, Iran is preparing for a worst case scenario in which the nuclear deal would fail. This clearly illustrates that Iran not under all circumstances will remain committed. Iran’s military capabilities are entirely defensive, as stated by the Ambassador, which stems from sober geostrategic calculations as well as moral and religious convictions. This position is further based on the historical experience by Iran. “Through the Iran-Iraq war, Saddam Hussein rained Soviet-made missiles on the cities, on which the world not only kept silent on but then would also not enable Iran to buy weapons in order to deter the aggressor at the time. Because of this, Iran believes that missiles are an effective means of deterrence and the focus on precision rather than range has opened up the possibility for striking back with pinpoint accuracy. No administration of Iran will leave its people defend less, a crucial point European states and the international community should realize. Important stakeholders in the region and internationally remain reluctant to hold the arsonist to account in the conflicts within the region.” “Dr. Mohammad Javad Zafir, the Foreign Minister of Iran, presented a proposal in 2015 for a regional dialogue forum in order to bring Iran and its neighbors together to work towards peace. This is making Iran hopeful that stakeholders outside the region of the Middle East will focus their efforts on urging their allies to propose such peace. Iran hopes that such dialogue can be the beginning of a good start towards peaceful times.” ———————— Photography by G.N.S. NL.          

Mr. Lelio Gavazza, Country Managing Director of Bvlgari , H.E. Hon. Mrs. Ankie Broekers-Knol, President of the Senate and H.E. Mr. Andrea Perugini, Ambassador of Italy. By Andrew Gibson. On the 11th April 2018, the Ambassador of Italy, His Excellency Mr. Andrea Perugini, hosted ‘Women in Innovation, Science and Industry’ at his residence, in an event that saw him collaborate with ‘Women Leaders International’ in bringing together top Dutch officials and titans of industry from Italy and the Netherlands. The event was masterminded by H.E. Mr. Perugini himself, thus continuing his country’s tradition of promoting women in power, as he explained in his speech how according to the 2017 Gender Equality Index, that over the last 10 years Italy is the European Country that has achieved the widest improvements on gender equality indicators, with Italy’s score increasing by 13 points (against 4,2 as the European average) as a consequence of the so called Golfo-Mosca Law, dating from 2011, that required as of 2012 the composition of corporate boards to comprise at least 1/5 of women and from 2015 1/3 of women, and which managed to raise the amount of women in boards of directors to 29% in 2016 compared to 6% in 2011.

Among many high-profile attendees was Mrs. Ankie Broekers-Knol, incumbent of the office of President of the Senate of the Kingdom of the Netherlands since 2013, who gave opening remarks on the day and Mrs Marian Hammersma, Secretary General at the Ministry of Education and Science. The guests were also treated to an inspiring video message from Mrs. Stientje van Veidhoven, State Secretary for Infrastructure and Water Management, who was unable to attend due to an official visit to China. During H.E. Mr. Andrea Perugini’s speech, he shrewdly referred to the remarks of the President of the Italian Foundation Marisa Bellisario: “women in Italy are sitting at the table, but they are still not dealing the cards.” In making this reference, the Ambassador demonstrated his appreciative reflectance upon the great steps forward that have been taken within Italy to improve gender equality at the top level, whilst acknowledging that the road to full equality still has a distance left to be travelled.

The President of Women Leaders International (WLI), Mrs. Gerda de Munck, also gave an empowering speech on the day. During her speech, Mrs. de Munck emphasised the importance of strengthening ties between women from all cultures and backgrounds in order to improve conditions for women at the top levels of government, industry, institutions and organisations worldwide.

Mrs. de Munck also explained the need for organisations such as WLI to promote women with ambition and to make them more visible, additionally stating that “WLI wishes to be a network of concrete relationships, aimed at building a climate of awareness able to influence economic, social and cultural spheres, with a view to having a voice in the public halls of power and drive the indispensable changes still needed in the position of women.” In the inspiring video message sent by Mrs. Stientje van Veldhoven, she spoke of her work as State Secretary for Infrastructure and Waste Management, working as part of a three-woman team to bring about positive change in areas such as recycling. During her message she commented that “the percentage of women in leading positions is inching upwards, but at a snail’s pace”, and that “the glass ceiling…is unfortunately still firmly in place”, before pointing to the various achievements of women in the field she now operates within, such as the two women who created the world’s first house heated by solar power. Mrs. van Veldhoven closed with words of encouragement for those at the event, “we must keep hosting conferences like this…keep up the good work.”

Participating panelists were Mrs. Luigia Pace, Research Biologist, Italian Institute for Genomic Medicine in Turin, Italy; Mrs. Cindy Gerhardt, Chief Operating Officer, Dutch State Mines Biotechnology Center; Mr. Carla Signorini, Head of Electrical Engineering department ESA Space Research and Technology Center in the Netherlands; Mrs. Ilona Haaijer, Former President & CEO DSM Food Specialties, Supervisory Board member Royal Boskalis N.V.; Mrs. Aura Colnaghi Calissoni, President of Carvico Group ad Mrs. Dace Luters-Thummel, Secretary General, European Women Lawyers Association. Prominent women leaders, Female Executives and ambassadors filled up the room; just a few men attended the event among them the Ambassador of Spain and next Director General of the OPCW, H.E. Fernando Arias. Mrs. Ankie Broekers-Knol, President of the Senate of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, gave an uplifting message of emphatic motivation to the guests during her speech at the event. During her talk, she made reference to numerous female role models ahead of Girlsday in the Netherlands. For example, Mrs. Broekers-Knol spoke of Italian Rita Levi-Montalcini, who was raised to become a wife and a mother, but her own passion led her to a Nobel prize. The President of the Senate concluded her speech by quoting the aforementioned Rita, “Women who have changed the world have never felt the need to show anything but their intelligence”, thus rounding off a talk which inspired all that had the pleasure of being in the audience. After the speeches, the Ambassador of Italy H.E. Mr. Andrea Perugini hosted a Question & Answer session, before inviting all guests to a Networking Buffet Dinner to conclude what was a hugely successful event in all regards. Also on display at the event was a wonderful exhibition of Bvlgari Jewellery, which attracted great interest and adoration from all, courtesy of Mr. Lelio Gavazza, Country Managing Director of Bvlgari who came from Rome for the special occasion.