ITALIANS EXAMINING ISAF HELO AND OTHER REQUESTS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ROME 005322 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/20/2013 TAGS: MARR AF IT NATO UN AFGHANISTAN IRAQI FREEDOM SUBJECT: ITALIANS EXAMINING ISAF HELO AND OTHER REQUESTS FOR MIL ASSISTANCE REF: A. STATE 317086 ¶B. ROME 5217 ¶C. BRUSSELS 5294 CLASSIFIED BY: POLITICAL MINISTER COUNSELOR THOMAS COUNTRYMAN FOR REASO NS 1.5(B)(D) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY. ITALY IS STUDYING REFTEL A REQUEST TO CONTRIBUTE HELICOPTERS FOR ISAF, IS LIKELY TO DEPLOY A PRT TO GHAZNI, IS UNLIKELY TO RETURN TROOPS TO KHOST AND IS ALMOST CERTAIN TO EXTEND ITS MILITARY PARTICIPATION IN IRAQ, ACCORDING TO FRANCESCO TRUPIANO, DIPLOMATIC ADVISOR TO DEFMIN MARTINO. A PARLIAMENTARY VOTE ON EXTENDING THE IRAQ MISSION WILL PROBABLY OCCUR IN MID-JANUARY, TRUPIANO TOLD POLMINCOUNS, TO ALLOW FOR CONTINUED CONSULTATIONS WITH COALITION AND OPPOSITION MEMBERS. THE GOVERNMENT WANTS TO APPROACH PARLIAMENT ON THE IRAQ EXTENSION AT THE SAME TIME AS IT PRESENTS ITS PROPOSAL FOR A STREAMLINED CONSULTATION PROCESS FOR NATO RESPONSE FORCE (NRF) OPERATIONS, HE EXPLAINED. TRUPIANO ALSO GAVE A BRIEF READ-OUT ON SECURITY RELATED ASPECTS OF THE NOVEMBER 17 GAERC MEETING. END SUMMARY. HELOS -------------- ¶2. (C) ITALY IS CONSIDERING REFTEL A REQUEST FOR HELICOPTERS FOR ISAF, ACCORDING TO DEFMIN MARTINO'S DIPLOMATIC ADVISOR, FRANCESCO TRUPIANO. ITALY'S HELO ASSETS ARE IN BIG DEMAND, TRUPIANO TOLD POLMINCOUNS ON NOVEMBER 21; THE GOI IS TRYING TO BALANCE REQUESTS TO HELP IN THE SUDAN AND AFGHANISTAN WITHOUT WEAKENING SUPPORT FOR OPERATIONS IN PLACES LIKE LEBANON (UNIFIL). REFTEL A POINTS WERE ALSO CONVEYED TO VCHOD GENERAL VINCENZO CAMPORINI ON NOVEMBER 17, AND TO MFA NATO AFFAIRS OFFICE DIRECTOR GIOVANNI BRAUZZI AND MFA AFGHANISTAN AFFAIRS OFFICE DIRECTOR DEMAIO ON NOVEMBER 18. POST WILL FOLLOW-UP WITH CAMPORINI AND TRUPIANO FOR AN OFFICIAL RESPONSE. PRT/TROOP REQUESTS -------------- ¶3. (C) ITALY WILL LIKELY AGREE TO DEPLOY A PROVINCIAL RECONSTRUCTION TEAM (PRT) IN AFGHANISTAN, TRUPIANO PREDICTED, BUT PROBABLY WILL NOT BE ABLE TO SEND ANOTHER BATTALION AS REQUESTED (SEE ALSO REFTEL B). THE ITALIAN DEFENSE GENERAL STAFF (IDGS) IS STILL PREPARING A FORMAL RESPONSE FOR MARTINO'S CONSIDERATION, BUT INDICATIONS ARE THAT IT WILL BE POLITICALLY AND LOGISTICALLY DIFFICULT TO RETURN TROOPS TO KHOST. IN ADDITION TO RE-ESTABLISHING THE LOGISTICS CHAIN THAT WAS DISMANTLED WHEN THE FOLGORE LEFT IN SEPTEMBER, DEPLOYING 1,000 TROOPS TO AFGHANISTAN WOULD PUT ITALIAN RESOURCES UNDER SEVERE STRAIN AGAIN, TRUPIANO EXPLAINED. HE DOUBTED ITALY COULD SUSTAIN SUCH A SITUATION A SECOND TIME. ¶4. (C) REDUCTIONS UNDER DISCUSSION IN THE BALKANS, PLUS THE UNIT THAT RETURNED FROM KHOST, MAY RELIEVE SOME OF THE PRESSURE ON ITALIAN TROOP COMMITMENTS, TRUPIANO SAID, MAKING IT EASIER TO DEPLOY A PRT. WHILE TROOPS IN ALBANIA, ETC. AREN'T FUNGIBLE WITH THOSE NEEDED IN AFGHANISTAN, THEY MAY BE ABLE TO FREE-UP UNITS THAT ARE. TIMING OF THE DEPLOYMENT WILL BE IMPORTANT TO JUGGLING AVAILABLE TROOPS. WHEN THE JOINT MFA/MOD TEAM RETURNS FROM GHAZNI WITH A REPORT ON PROJECTED REQUIREMENTS FOR A PRT (I.E., THE NUMBER/TYPE OF TROOPS NEEDED, REQUIREMENTS FOR CIVILIAN ASSISTANCE, LOGISTICS OF GHAZNI AREA, ETC.),THE MOD WILL HAVE A BETTER IDEA OF WHAT TYPE OF MILITARY SUPPORT THEY'LL NEED TO DEPLOY, AND WHEN, IN ORDER TO SUPPORT THE CIVILIAN SIDE OF THE PRT. FLAGS TO POST -------------- ¶5. (C) TRUPIANO RAISED ITALY'S CONTINUED DISSATISFACTION WITH GEN. KUJAT'S FLAGS TO POST PROPOSAL AT NATO, AND REPEATED THAT ITALY FOUND IT NOT ONLY UNACCEPTABLE BUT OFFENSIVE, AS DEFMIN MARTINO HAD TOLD SECDEF DURING THEIR OCTOBER 8 MEETING IN COLORADO. THERE SHOULD BE NO DOUBT ABOUT THE GRAVITY OF THE ISSUE FOR ITALY, TRUPIANO NOTED; MARTINO HAD RAISED IT WITH SECDEF, FM FRATTINI ADDRESSED IT WITH SECRETARY POWELL, AMB MORENO DISCUSSED IT WITH AMB. BURNS, ALONG WITH NEGOTIATIONS IN OTHER FORA. ITALY WILL CONTINUE TO BREAK SILENCE ON THE PROPOSAL, EVEN AT THE MINISTERIAL LEVEL, TRUPIANO SAID. NEGOTIATIONS ARE UNDERWAY WITH THE UK AND WITH OTHER KEY ALLIES, HE ADDED. POLMINCOUNS ASSURED TRUPIANO THAT THE USG WILL SUPPORT WHATEVER SOLUTION ITALY AND ITS EUROPEAN ALLIES REACH ON THE ISSUE. ROME 00005322 001.2 OF 002 N ROME 00005322 002.1 OF 002 HE NOVEMBER 17 GAERC MEETING WERE ENCOURAGING, TRUPIANO REPORTED (SEE REFTEL C). ALL EU MEMBERS (VICE FOUR) WILL BE INVOLVED IN DECIDING AMONGST THE VARIOUS PROPOSALS FOR BUILDING AN EU MILITARY PLANNING CAPACITY. MINISTERS HAD SPECIFICALLY ENDORSED THE NEED TO AVOID DUPLICATION AND ENSURE COMPATIBILITY WITH NATO. TRUPIANO NOTED THAT A PRECEDENT HAS BEEN FIRMLY SET TO HAVE THE NATO SECGEN (OR DEPSECGEN) PARTICIPATE IN ALL EU DEFENSE-RELATED MINISTERIALS, WITH RECIPROCAL ATTENDANCE BY SOLANA OR HIS DEPUTY AT APPROPRIATE NATO MEETINGS. INCOMING EU PRESIDENCY IRELAND PLANNED TO CONTINUE THE PRACTICE, ACCORDING TO TRUPIANO. ¶7. (C) ITALY WAS PLEASED THAT EU MEMBERS APPROVED THE APPROACH IT PROPOSED, AS EU PRESIDENT, FOR BUILDING CAPABLE, INTEROPERABLE MILITARY FORCES BY 2010, TRUPIANO SAID. WHILE THE ITALIAN PAPER ON THE SUBJECT WASN'T FORMALLY APPROVED AT THE EU MINISTERS' MEETING ON NOVEMBER 17 BECAUSE FRANCE AND THE UK HAD ALSO SUBMITTED PROPOSALS, THE MORE GENERAL ITALIAN APPROACH WAS. TRUPIANO EMPHASIZED THAT THE TIMELINE SET FORTH IN THE ITALIAN PAPER DELIBERATELY MATCHES NATO'S SCHEDULE FOR ACHIEVING AN INTEROPERABLE FORCE. ¶8. (C) MARTINO WAS ALSO ENCOURAGED THAT EU MINISTERS SUPPORTED THE IDEA OF PLACING THE NEW EUROPEAN DEFENSE AGENCY UNDER EU DEFENSE MINISTERS' DIRECTION, ACCORDING TO TRUPIANO. THIS WILL ENSURE THAT THE AGENCY RETAINS A PRIMARY FOCUS ON DEFENSE POLICY RATHER THAN INDUSTRIAL POLICY, AS MARTINO HAS OFTEN URGED. THE AGENCY ESTABLISHMENT TEAM, CREATED BY THE EU MINISTERS TO EXAMINE THE LINKS BETWEEN THE AGENCY AND EXISTING ENTITIES LIKE OCAAR, COREPAR, AND NATIONAL DEFMINS, WILL PRESENT ITS RECOMMENDATIONS BY JUNE 2004, HE NOTED, AND THE AGENCY SHOULD BE UP AND RUNNING BY THE END OF NEXT YEAR. SEMBLER ROME 00005322 002.2 OF 002 N NNNN 2003ROME05322 - Classification: UNCLASSIFIED