The United States and Italy strengthened their ongoing commitment to the bilateral relationship during the inaugural meeting of the U.S.-Italy Strategic Dialogue, November 19-20, 2018. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte launched the dialogue at the White House on July 30 to focus on improving security and stabilization efforts in the Mediterranean region.

U.S. Under Secretary for Political Affairs David Hale and U.S. Principal Deputy Under Secretary for Defense Policy David Trachtenberg and Italian Director General for Political and Security Affairs Sebastiano Cardi and Italian Head of the Political-Military Office in the Cabinet of the Minister of Defense Rear Admiral Gianfranco Annunziata co-chaired the two-day session attended by interagency representation from both the United States and Italy.