Italy promises transparency as part of a "safe and concrete tourism plan" says Di Maio.

Italy is "ready and prepared" to welcome back European tourists from 3 June onwards, foreign minister Luigi Di Maio told counterparts from various EU countries during a summit on tourist flows on 18 May, reports Rai News.

Di Maio said it was "unacceptable" that there should be blacklists among European countries, warning: "If we do not change direction, there will be serious economic repercussions on the tourism sectors of all European countries, not just Italy."

The foreign ministers reached agreement that there should be no "bilateral agreements" or "tourism pacts" between EU nations, a proposal ruled out categorically by Italian premier Giuseppe Conte in recent days.

     Read also:

• Italy to allow travel to and from abroad from 3 June
• Italy says no to EU tourist corridors this summer
• Italians will go on summer holidays says Conte

"We are committed to providing a weekly report in several languages of the epidemiological trend" in Italy, "region by region", concluded Di Maio, addressing his counterparts from Austria, Croatia, Cyprus, Germany, Greece, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain.

The summit took place the same day that Italy reopened a large section of its economy, and came as the country's daily death rate from coronavirus dropped to 99, the lowest tally since before the nationwide lockdown began on 10 March.

In a tweet yesterday evening, Di Maio stated (in Italian): "We must restart the country and guarantee safety to Italians. This is why it is essential that in the summer Italy has the possibility to welcome tourists from other EU countries as well. We are working on a safe and concrete tourism plan."

Dobbiamo far ripartire il Paese e garantire sicurezza agli italiani. Per questo è fondamentale che in estate l’Italia abbia la possibilità di accogliere turisti provenienti anche da altri Paesi Ue. Stiamo lavorando a un piano turistico sicuro e concreto.https://t.co/bSitRiGoeH— Luigi Di Maio (@luigidimaio) May 18, 2020