ITALY: FASSINO WANTS THE FOREIGN MINISTRY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ROME 000502

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/16/2016
TAGS: PGOV PREL MOPS MARR IZ IT ITALIAN POLITICS ITALY NATIONAL ELECTIONS
SUBJECT: ITALY: FASSINO WANTS THE FOREIGN MINISTRY

REF: ROME 0371

Classified By: Pol M/C for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: The Ambassador spoke at length with Democrats
of the Left (DS) Party Secretary Piero Fassino on February

16. Fassino told the Ambassador that he thought either he or
Daisy President Francesco Rutelli would be Foreign Minister
in a future center-left government. The Ambassador noted the
near absence of NATO from the recently released Union
governing program and said a center-left government should
not strengthen ties to Europe at the expense of its
relationship with the U.S. END SUMMARY.


2. (C) The Ambassador spoke at length with Democrats of the
Left (DS) Party Secretary Piero Fassino on the margins of a
dinner hosted February 16 by former U.S. Ambassador to Italy
Reginald Bartholomew. As in previous meetings, Fassino went
out of his way to present himself as a relative moderate
within the center-left coalition.

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FASSINO WANTS TO BE FOREIGN MINISTER
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3. (C) Fassino, a former Under Secretary in the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, told the Ambassador that he thought either
he or Daisy President Francesco Rutelli would be Foreign
Minister in a future center-left government. He said that DS
President Massimo D'Alema was another possibility but that
D'Alema was also under consideration for President of the
Senate.

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AMBASSADOR QUESTIONS FASSINO ON NATO POLICY
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3. (C) The Ambassador raised with Fassino the near absence of
NATO from the recently released Union governing program
(Septel). Fassino replied weakly that NATO is so natural a
partner for Italy as to be assumed. The Ambassador
contrasted the scarce mention of NATO with the intense focus
the document places on Italian relations with the EU and
Italy's European neighbors. He said it would be
counterproductive for a center-left government to lose the
considerable momentum in relations built by the Berlusconi
government. It should not be antithetical to continue close
relations with the U.S. Fassino heartily agreed.

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FASSINO WANTS CONSULTATION WITH U.S. ON IRAQ
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4. (C) Fassino told the Ambassador that he had argued
unsuccessfully to have language included in the Union
governing program that specifically stated Italy would
"consult with allies" on any Italian troop withdrawal from
Iraq. (Note: The actual statement reads "immediately after
parliamentary elections in April, the Union will ask the
Italian parliament to vote for the withdrawal of Italian
troops. Withdrawal would occur according to a schedule that
is based on a timing that is technically needed for
withdrawal and in consultation with the new Iraqi Government
in order to guarantee security. Withdrawal will be
accompanied by a "strong political initiative to support....
transition toward democracy in Iraq and contribute to finding
a path for Iraq to attain full democratic stability and which
would give Iraqis full sovereignty over their country." End
note.) Fassino spoke supportively of Israel and on the need
to take serious action with regards to Iran.

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D'ALEMA AND WHITE PHOSPHOROUS
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5. (C) The Ambassador asked Fassino to explain D'Alema's
recent comments comparing the U.S. military's use of white
phosphorous in Fallujah with suicide bombers. Fassino flatly
called that comment a mistake. He said D'Alema had been
under pressure during a debate with Foreign Minister
Gianfranco Fini and had simply fallen back on his instincts.
That, the Ambassador said, is exactly the problem. He told
Fassino that Washington pays close attention to such
comments, and they are taken at face value.

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MANAGING THE UNION COALITION
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6. (C) Fassino complained about the amount of time he spends
in coalition management. He said the Union now has eleven
formal members, eight of which account for only three percent
of the vote combined. He predicted that Communist Renewal
Secretary Fausto Bertinotti would cause more difficulty on

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domestic issues than in foreign policy.


7. (C) COMMENT: Fassino is a relative moderate in the Union
coalition and even within his own DS party. Like Rutelli
(Ref A),he has consistently tried to profile himself as a
moderate and potential friend of the U.S. Whether sincere or
not, it is unclear whether the fragile nature of the Union
coalition would allow Fassino to deliver a pragmatic foreign
policy unconstrained by the ideological wing of the
coalition. END COMMENT.
SPOGLI