World Bulletin / News Desk

Italy will host a meeting of culture ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) industrialised countries in Florence in March, Culture Minister Dario Franceschini announced Wednesday.

Billing the talks as a first for the G7 grouping, Franceschini said the March 30-31 meeting would focus on the protection of cultural heritage, combatting trafficking of artistic and historic items and using culture as an instrument for dialogue.