Italy must "count more" in the European Union, whose regulations are converted into 80% of the laws passed by parliament, foreign minister Antonio Tajani said on Friday.
"So it's crucial to act here and to coordinate,"Tajani told the States General of Italy in Brussels event to enhance the role of its officials in relations with the EU and Nato and to boost mutual understanding.
"We've got a lot of results and the latest victory in the recent amendments to the EU packing directive is also thanks to Italian businesses," Tajani said.
"Owing to major teamwork, everyone in Brussels, Rome, and also Euro-MPs, we managed to support our industrial and agricultural sectors," he said.
A revised EU directive agreed unanimously by EU countries' permanent representatives earlier this month introduces packaging reduction targets of five percent by 2030, 10 percent by 2035 and 15 percent by 2040.
Premier Giorgia Meloni last week hailed the regulation's amendments as a victory for "an Italy that does not yield to solutions that penalise our industry".
The amendments "incentivise technologies in which we are investing such as chemical recycling" Meloni's office said in a statement.
"They safeguard sectors in which our companies have increased the recyclability of packaging, in which we are at the forefront, such as compostable plastics, or in which we export products of excellence, such as wines, sparkling wines, vermouths, and spirits," the statement added.
