Istituto Affari Internazionali

Formation	1965
Type	International relations think tank
Headquarters	Via dei Montecatini, 17
Location	Rome, Italy
President	Ferdinando Nelli Feroci
Vice Presidents	Ettore Greco (Executive), Michele Nones, Pier Carlo Padoan
Director	Nathalie Tocci
Website	iai.it/en

The Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI) (English: Institute of International Affairs) is an Italian international relations think tank, and non-profit organisation founded in 1965 by Altiero Spinelli. It is ranked among the global top-20 think tanks in the "Foreign Policy and International Relations" category, according to the 2020 Global Go To Think Tank Index.^[1]

History

Altiero Spinelli was the institute's first director, thanks to joint contributions from the Fondazione Olivetti, the cultural and political association Il Mulino and the Nord e Sud Research Center, as well as to substantial support from the Ford Foundation. Spinelli took North American and British think tanks as a model: he created a flexible private organization, distinct from university institutes and governmental or ministerial research centers, yet capable of inter-acting and cooperating with the government, the public administration, national economic actors and foreign academic centers. These are still the IAI's outstanding features today. In September 2020 the Institute moved to Palazzo Cipolla, an elegant Neo-Renaissance building in the heart of Rome. The Institute's main objective is to promote an understanding of the problems of international politics through studies, research, training, meetings and publications, with the aim of increasing the opportunities of all countries to move in the direction of supranational organization, democratic freedom and social justice (IAI Statute, Article 1).^[2]

Research

Research focuses on the following thematic areas:

• European Union, politics and institutions
• Global actors (United States, Latin America, Asia, Russia)
• Mediterranean, Middle East and Africa
• Security and defence
• Energy and climate
• Multilateralism and global governance (international political economy, WTO, G7)
• Italy's foreign policy

The research staff is made up of nearly 40 researchers, including area or project directors. Most of the research projects are carried out together with other institutes with similar characteristics.

The Institute is an active participant in – and has sometimes even been a promoter of – important transnational research networks:

• Council of Councils^[3]
• EuroMeSCo (EuroMediterranean Study Commission)^[4]
• ETTG (European Think Tanks Group)^[5]
• New-Med (OSCE New-Med Track II Network)^[6]
• TEPSA (Trans European Policy Studies Association)^[7]

Publications

• The International Spectator, a peer reviewed English-language international relations quarterly, published by Routledge (Taylor & Francis Group)^[8]
• Global Politics and Security, a series of books on topical questions in international relations and contemporary history, published by Peter Lang^[9]
• IAI Research Studies, a series of books on problems of international affairs in either English or Italian^[10]
• IAI Papers and Documenti IAI, two series of papers produced within the context of IAI research projects and areas of expertise^[11]
• IAI Commentaries, op-eds on a variety of contemporary issues in Italian and global affairs^[12]
• AffarInternazionali, an Italian language webzine on politics, strategy and economics^[13]

In addition, the IAI manages three websites:

• iai.it/en: the IAI's official website
• Affarinternazionali.it: the site of the webzine by the same name
• New-Med Research Network: site on the Mediterranean