(23 February 2017) Italy and Germany are united via political, economic, and cultural ties since their unifications: a friendship that goes back two millennia and that was renewed within the European context. Sixty years after the Treaty of Rome, the circumstances brought on by recent years of financial and economic crisis encourages us to take stock of the bilateral relationship in order to understand differences and support a renewed European spirit. The Friedrich Ebert Foundation has conducted research surveying citizens from the two respective countries to determine the cultural perception of Italian-German relations today. The main results of this survey - titled "Amici Distanti” (Distant Friends)- will be presented at the Italian Cultural Institute in Cologne on March 18. Lucio Izzo, director of the Italian Cultural Institute will moderate the discussion of the results of the survey between Ernst Hillebrand, Director of F.E.S in Italy, and Laura Garavini, President of the Inter-Parliamentary Group of German-Italian friendship. (Red)

TRUST IN INSTITUTIONS

Italians and Germans generally have little faith in institutions of their respective countries. Scepticism in Italy towards institutions and organisation is decisively higher. In Italy as in Germany this mistrust in institutions is placed primarily against their parties: 95% of Italians and 80% of Germans expressed they had little faith or none at all towards their respective political parties. There is also a great difference in sentiment towards economists, that is, employers’ associations and unions. German citizen’s faith in German unions are at a relatively lower percentage of 64% compared to Italy’s 90%.