Russia's Kudrin to discuss cooperation with Italy.

ROME, June 24 (Itar-Tass) -- Russian Deputy Prime Minister and Finance
Minister Alexei Kudrin will discuss economic cooperation with Italian
Foreign Minister Franco Frattini on Friday in the framework of the 12th
session of the bilateral council on economic, industrial, and financial
cooperation.
Italian foreign ministry spokesman Maurizio Massari said "Russia is
our strategic partner which occupies the fourth place by trade turnover.
Our strategic partnership is based on common interests and market
interdependence."
Kudrin and Frattini will hold a joint press conference after the talks.
Over four thousand Italian companies operate in Russia, including such
giants as ENI which implements the South Stream pipeline project with
Gazprom, Finmeccanica which creates the Superjet-100 passenger aircraft
with Sukhoi, Unicredit Bank, FIAT, and household appliance producers which
have their own facilities in Russia.
Russia invests in Italy through such groups as Severstal, Gazprom,
LUKOIL, and others.