Umberto Vattani

Umberto Vattani (born 5 December 1938) is an Italian diplomat. The only official in the history of Italy to have twice held the position of Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He was also the last president of the National Institute for Foreign Trade until his suppression in 2011.

Education Born in Skopje (then Kingdom of Yugoslavia), to a family of officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he studied in France, England and Connecticut, at Wesleyan University, on a Fulbright Program. In 1960 he obtained a degree in Law at Sapienza University of Rome and in 1962 a degree in political science.

In 1961, following a public competition, he was hired by the Bank of Italy and assigned to the Research Office. The following year, for subsequent competition, Vattani was hired at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and entered the diplomatic career. When Berlusconi finally chose Renato Ruggiero, they replaced it with the General Secretariat colleague Giuseppe Baldocci, and sent Vattani to Brussels (2001- 2003) as the Permanent Representative of Italy to the European Union, in the period of Romano Prodi as President of the European Commission.

In 2004, following the retirement of Ambassador Baldocci, Vattani was appointed Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the second time, until June 2005.

In 2005 Vattani was nominated president of the National Institute for Foreign Trade by the Council of Ministers and in 2009 he was reconfirmed for a second term until the institution was suppressed in 2011.

He is president of the Japan-Italy Foundation and general manager of the Italy–USA Foundation. He is president of Venice International University, formed on the Italian side by the University of Padua, the Ca' Foscari University of Venice and the Università Iuav di Venezia in Venice . He was president of Sviluppo Italia Sicilia until 2012.

Honours National honours

Foreign honours Grand Cross of the Order of the Southern Cross Commander of the Legion of Honour Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Prince Henry Honorary Knight Grand Cross of Order of St Michael and St George Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St. Gregory the Great Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Pope Pius IX