Antonio Tajani

Antonio Tajani (Italian pronunciation: [anˈtɔːnjo taˈjaːni]; born 4 August 1953) is an Italian politician who has been serving as Deputy Prime Minister of Italy and Minister of Foreign Affairs since 22 October 2022. He served as President of the European Parliament from 2017 to 2019, as European Commissioner from 2008 to 2014, and also as a member of the European Parliament from 1994 to 2008 and again from 2014 to 2022 until he was elected to Italy's Chamber of Deputies. Following the death of Silvio Berlusconi, Tajani was appointed secretary of Forza Italia, becoming the party's new leader on 15 July 2023.

Career

Early years

Born to a mother from Ferentino, in the province of Frosinone, and a father from Vietri sul Mare, in the province of Salerno, Tajani attended the Liceo Torquato Tasso in Rome and graduated in law from the Sapienza University of Rome; he was a reserve officer of the Italian Air Force. After attending the high specialization course in air defense at Borgo Piave di Latina, he was air defense controller at the San Giovanni Teatino radar base. In his youth Tajani was a militant of Fronte Monarchico Giovanile (Youth Monarchist Front), a student organization of the Italian Monarchist Union (UMI). He has consistently advocated the return from exile of the House of Savoy (which was banned by the Italian Constitution until 2002, when the Italian Parliament lifted the ban).