Overview

• The Council of Ministers approved a reorganization of the Foreign Ministry, with Cecilia Piccioni set to head the DGAP and assume the vicesegretario generale role.
• Piccioni becomes the first woman to lead the DGAP after a year in Moscow that included presenting credentials to Vladimir Putin in November 2024.
• Stefano Beltrame, a career diplomat and former ambassador to Vienna, has served as consul general in Shanghai and as diplomatic adviser to Giancarlo Giorgetti, Matteo Salvini and Luca Zaia.
• He is widely regarded as close to the Lega, and past Russia‑related missions he helped prepare drew media scrutiny that produced no judicial outcomes.
• The Moscow posting remains highly sensitive given the war in Ukraine and reduced embassy staffing, and Zaia publicly congratulated Beltrame on the appointment.