Following his last year’s three-day official visit to the autonomous region of Sicily during which he had already encountered several members of local Red Cross committees, His Royal Highness Crown Prince Nicolas Petrovitch Njegosh will be received tomorrow afternoon, Thursday April 3rd, 2008, at the headquarters of the National Committee of the Italian Red Cross, via Toscana 12, Rome, Italy.

The Crown Prince will meet Dr. Massimo Barra, National President of the Italian Red Cross and Vice-President of the Red Cross/Red Crescent Standing Commission, also advisor to the Italian Government on drugs.

After a meeting during which Dr. Barra will bestow upon H.R.H. Prince Nicolas the Grand Cross of Merit of the Italian Red Cross, the Crown Prince will confer the insignia of Grand Cross in the Order of Danilo I to the historic Banner of the Italian Red Cross, then to its National President, Dr. Barra. Subsequently, His Royal Highness will pay a solemn homage and lay a spray of flowers in front of the memorial stele of Queen Elena of Montenegro (º1873, †1952), consort of Vittorio Emanuele III (º1869, †1947), in the entry hall of the Italian Red Cross headquarters, commemorating the fact that his great aunt the Queen of Italy funded the Voluntary Nurse Corps of the Italian Red Cross.

During his official visit to the Italian Red Cross, Crown Prince Nicolas will be accompanied by H.E. Mr. Antun Sbutega, Ambassador of Montenegro to the Holy See and the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. As part of the decoration ceremony at the headquarters of the Italian Red Cross, H.E. Ambassador Sbutega will be also invested with the insignia of Grand Cross in the Order of Danilo I.

In the evening, Crown Prince Nicolas will take part to a dinner offered by H.E. Ambassador Sbutega at the Embassy of Montenegro to the Holy See and the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, via Crescenzio 97, to which will also attend H.E. Mr. Enrico Tuccillo, Ambassador of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta to Montenegro.