Writing in Al-Ahram of February 19, 1933, under the headline, ‘The Italians in Egypt', the Italian historian Angelo San Marco said: “The Italians continued to reside in Egypt long after their native cities fell into decay and lost their status as maritime centres with the decline of the Mediterranean as a major thoroughfare for world trade." Indeed, the hundreds of Italian words that have been incorporated into Egyptian Arabic are perhaps the best testimony to the fact that of all the foreign communities residing in Egypt, Italians had so closely interacted with Egyptians. Italian-Egyptian relations were so strong and deemed so important that when the King of Italy, Victor Emmanuel III, abdicated the throne in 1946 after Italy's defeat in World War II, Egyptian King Farouk invited him to live in Alexandria. Victor Emmanuel III died in Alexandria in December 1947 and was buried there, behind the altar of St Catherine's Cathedral. Now, almost 80 years after San Marco's statement, Italians are still possessed by nostalgia towards Egypt, and Alexandria in particular. The Italian Ambassador in Cairo, Mr. Maurizio Massari, has recently suggested the conclusion of a twin agreement between the Mediterranean city of Naples and Alexandria. Recalling Italy's preeminent political, economic and cultural presence in Alexandria throughout the ages, Mr. Massari has proposed the establishment of an industrial city near Alexandria to encourage Italian investors and entrepreneurs to open new vistas in and around the city. Earlier, Minister of Planning and International Co-operation, Dr. Ashraf el-Arabi, has discussed with the Italian ambassador ways and means of boosting co-operation in various fields. The two officials reviewed the currently implemented projects within the framework of the second phase of the Italian-Egyptian debt swap programme in the fields of agriculture, technical training, sustainable development, solid wastes and environment. The Italian government has earlier announced that it shifted $100 million of Egypt's debts into grants to fund development and infrastructure projects here. The Italian diplomat said that Italy wants to strengthen ties with Egypt within the upcoming phase, noting that Egypt is a strategic partner to Italy. He affirmed the desire of his country that the ongoing projects that Italy implements in Egypt will meet the demands of the Egyptian side in the current stage. Egyptians will never forget the roles played by Italians in support of Egypt's renaissance and development. During the Middle Ages Italian communities from the “Maritime Republics" were present in Egypt as merchants. Since the Republic of Venice, there has always been a Venetian Quarter in Cairo. Some of the first educational missions that Egypt sent to Europe under Mohamed Ali were headed to Italy to learn the art of printing. Mohamed Ali, the true founder of modern Egypt, also engaged a number of Italian experts to assist in the various tasks of building the modern state: in the exploration of antiquities, prospecting for minerals, and drawing the first survey map of Egypt. The most famous building related to the Italian community was the Royal Opera House, which was inaugurated in 1871 with opera “Aida" by the Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi.
