US embassy cable - 04ROME3166

UNCLAS ROME 003166 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PARM, PREL, KPAO, IT, NATO, GLOBAL DEFENSE, U.S FORCES IN ITALY 
SUBJECT: ITALIAN REACTIONS TO PRESIDENT'S REMARKS ON GLOBAL 
MILITARY TRANSFORMATION 
 
REF: A. STATE 174698 
B. ROME 3138 
 
1. (U) Summary.  President Bush's speech on military 
transformation received limited initial government reaction 
and media coverage in Italy.  Most headlines focused on US 
troop reductions in Europe, with several articles commenting 
that the planned changes signify NATO's decreased importance 
in the eyes of the US and payback to Germany for its lack of 
support in Iraq.  Curiously, many articles also highlighted 
the planned transfer of the US Navy's European headquarters 
from London to Naples -- despite the fact that the move was 
not mentioned in the President's speech.  End summary. 
 
2. (U) In an interview with top-circulation Corriere della 
Sera, FM Frattini emphasized that President Bush's 
announcement to restructure the presence of US troops abroad 
(Ref A) did not signal a reduction in the US commitment to 
Europe or Asia.  Commenting that the Cold War is behind us, 
Frattini said the decision to move NAVEUR headquarters from 
London to Naples is significant recognition of the importance 
of the Mediterranean. 
 
3. (U)  Stefano Silvestri, head of one of Rome's leading 
think tanks, comments in leading business daily Il Sole-24 
Ore that the President's decision signals a transformation in 
the relationship between NATO and its allies.  He notes that 
rather than a strategic partnership, NATO has become an 
unstable alliance where US forces serve US interests, but 
allies, who support and sustain those forces, don't also 
share those interests.  Lucia Annunziata, former Director of 
the government-controlled RAI Uno television network known 
for her outspoken and often controversial views, comes to a 
similar conclusion in an editorial previewing the President's 
speech in the August 15 edition of La Stampa.  Even 
pro-Berlusconi Il Foglio argues that the move, a response to 
NATO's reluctance to commit itself in Iraq, reflects the 
difference in approach to the war on terrorism that will lead 
NATO allies down separate paths. 
 
4. (SBU) Comment. Although the NAVEUR move was not mentioned 
in the President's speech, many newspaper reports highlighted 
this as one of the major consequences for Italy of the US' 
Global Defense Posture Review.  FM Frattini's comments, 
coming at the end of a lengthy interview about UNSC reform in 
which he claimed that President Bush specifically promised PM 
Berlusconi that the US would do nothing to harm Italy's 
interests, has even led to speculation that the NAVEUR 
decision is part of a trade-off agreed between the two 
leaders that would leave Italy without a UN Security Council 
seat.  We can expect the Italian press to come up with even 
more inventive explanations of why global reposturing is not 
simply a strategic decision, but one based also on political 
considerations.  End comment. 
 
Visit Rome's Classified Website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/rome/index.cf m 
 
SKODON 
 
 
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	2004ROME03166 - Classification: UNCLASSIFIED