Mbeki to lead high ranking delegation to Italy

President Thabo Mbeki leaves for Italy on Tuesday for a three-day State visit. He will be accompanied by a group of ministers and business leaders. Foreign Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Trade and Industry Minister Mandisi Mphahlwa and Science and Technology Minister Mosibudi Mangena are among the delegates who will accompany Mbeki. BuaNews reports the Department of Foreign Affairs as saying the meeting between Mbeki and his Italian counterpart, Carlo Azeglia Ciampi, will focus on the current status of bilateral political and economic relations between the two countries. Italy has been one of South Africa’s key trading partners since 1995.