Newsgroup: it.politica.internazionale
Titolo: Italians in Lebanon: A few things you should know

E mica cazzi!
MMAX
da haaretz
Italians in Lebanon: A few things you should know
By Sandro De Bernardin
The Italian pledge to the UN mission in Lebanon was warmly welcomed by
the Israeli government and by Israelis in general.
But something struck me: While expressing their appreciation, some
Israeli friends seemed surprised to discover Italy in the forefront of
a heavy military commitment. Associating Italy more with art and
soccer than with a warrior tradition, they wondered why we decided to
get involved, whether we will perform effectively and whether we will
keep going if things get tough.
Here are some pieces of information that I provided to those friends.
Maybe somebody else will find them interesting.
1. True, Italy is not a warrior country: History confirms that
Italians do not like war, and particularly when the cause is not
worthy. But they have a longstanding military tradition, pretty
effective armed forces and long experience in dealing with difficult
foreign theaters. During the last half century, Italy has made its
forces available for many peacekeeping and peace enforcement
operations. All in all, 10,000 Italian troops are presently serving in
28 international missions.
2. The missions engaged in so far have not dealt only with monitoring
the implementation of peace agreements (like, for instance, the one
between Israel and Egypt). Indeed, in most cases, our task was to
ensure law and order in non-stabilized environments, entailing the
need for "robust" activity. The toll we paid for our commitment is
high: To date, some 70 Italian soldiers have lost their lives while
serving in peacekeeping or peace enforcement.
3. Let me recall some of the theaters where we have been or are still
working. Some 2,300 Italians were in Beirut from 1982 to 1984. In
1992-94, 2,500 of our soldiers were deployed in the Somali hell (and
were the last ones to leave). In 1993-95, a contingent of 1,000 men
controlled Mozambique to ensure the end of the civil war. In 1997,
2,800 Italian troops helped the Albanian government to impose its
authority on the anarchy and organized crime that prevailed in that
country. Since 1996, we have been injecting troops by the thousands in
order to deal with the turbulent aftermaths of the wars in Bosnia and
Kosovo (even nowadays, we maintain 3,200 soldiers in the NATO and EU
missions there). Following 9/11, Italians have operated, in a "robust"
mode, in Afghanistan (where 1,000 men took part in the American-led
mission Enduring Freedom and 1,400 soldiers are still serving within
the ISAF mission) and in Iraq (where 2,500 troops will end their
mandate next autumn).
4. In Italy, conscription ended in 2004. Today, our armed forces are
totally professional. For peacekeeping operations we can provide,
among other things, a special asset: the Carabinieri Corps. In
addition to being a full-fledged fighting force, the Carabinieri
(Riflers) add a unique capability in enforcing public order by
combining military strength and policing expertise.
5. This past weekend, 1,000 Italian troops landed on the coast of
Tyre. A further 1,500 men (and eventually even more) will be deployed
in Lebanon in the next two months. Their mandate is established by
Resolution 1701. Together with other UNIFIL forces, they will assist
the Lebanese Army in imposing the authority of the Lebanese government
south of the Litani River and banning any other armed force. They will
assist the Lebanese Army in preventing the smuggling of weapons into
Lebanon. As Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema put it, should new
weapons come from Syria, the international community will learn of it
and will not remain passive.
6. What will happen after the first Italian casualty? Will we fly
away? Our past record in peacekeeping says NO. We know that we are
taking a significant risk, but this is not the first time. We accept
the risk because we deem it worthwhile for the sake of peace in the
Middle East. We believe that peace is worth its price. And it is
essential that everybody - the international partners as well as the
parties directly involved - be willing to pay his share.
The writer is Italy's ambassador to Israel. 
-- 
E' in discussione su it.news.gruppi la RFD 
di it.politica.internazionale moderato

 The writer is Italy's ambassador to Israel. 
LOL!
Tb
-- 
www.tonibaruch.blogspot.com

 soccer than with a warrior tradition, 
Ignorantelli in storia ebraica e del mandato 'sti amici dell'ambasciatore.
Palmiro Pangloss
-- 
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 combining military strength and policing expertise.
And, last but not least, are an almost infinite source for jokes.
Riot l'elitista ademocratico