BLUE LANTERN LICENSE 050079832: STELIT EMITTER

C O N F I D E N T I A L ROME 000513 SIPDIS PM/DTCC: BLUE LANTERN COORDINATOR PM/DTCC: JOUBERT-LIN E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/07/2019 TAGS: ETTC KOMC IT SUBJECT: BLUE LANTERN LICENSE 050079832: STELIT EMITTER MEMORY MODULES REF: STATE 00032648 Classified By: ECON Counselor William R. Meara for reasons 1.4 b and d ¶1. (SBU) Summary: On 28 April Econoffs performed a site visit of Stelit SRL, pursuant to license 050079832 for Emitter Memory Modules. Stelit appeared to be a bona fide Foreign Intermediate Consignee. Company management was familiar with restrictions on re-export of US defense items. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) On 28 April Econoffs performed a site visit in Rome of the headquarters of Stelit SRL. Commander (Commendatore) Renato Mauro, the company President, responded to all of Post's questions and gave a tour of Stelit's facilities. Mauro said that following a career in the Italian Army, he entered the defense consignment business in 1975 by founding Stelit. He said he later added a manufacturing facility in Pomezia for defense-related electronics, but that by 1983 pressure from American competitors forced him to leave the manufacturing sector and focus exclusively on defense consignment. Stelit currently has ten employees. ¶3. (C) Mauro said he was "very familiar," with restrictions on re-export of US defense items. He said that his business was relatively straightforward, as ninety percent of the time Stelit purchases defense items on behalf of the Italian Ministry of Defense or other ministries within the Italian government. The remaining ten percent of cases involve Selex, Telespazio and other large Italian companies. In all cases Stelit is responsible for testing equipment to ensure it meets the client's technical specifications. Mauro also volunteered that his company did work for the Italian secret (meaning intelligence) services from time to time, in the form of providing high end electronic equipment. He said his title of Commendatore was linked to having worked with these services for 45 years. ¶4. (SBU) Econoffs toured the company headquarters. Security measures generally appeared adequate, and suitable for the suburban area in which it is located. There is one security camera on site, as well as an alarm system directly linked to a local Carabinieri post located only three minutes away, by car. Econoffs viewed the walk-in safe, in which US defense items are kept while they are tested before being delivered to the Italian government. The safe had two doors, one of which was fire-resistant. Mauro said theft of Stelit's property wasn't a concern because of the security measures in place as well as the difficulty criminals would encounter trying to fence the type of electronic equipment in which Stelit specializes. ¶5. (SBU) Mauro also supplied Post with the delivery documents for Blue Lantern license 050079832, as well as the EDO shipment. He gave Carlo Esposito as a POC within the Italian Air Force who would be able to confirm the bona fides of the transaction for the Italian government. Of note, the phone number listed for Stelit in ref A is incorrect. The correct phone number for Stelit is (39) 06.992.919.19. The fax number is (39) 06.993.440.40 and the email address is r.amuro@stelit.it. ¶6. (SBU) On 6 May, Post confirmed with Maresciallo Carlo Esposito of the Italian Air Force that it had placed an order for the above listed items to use as spare Emitter Memory Modules. According to Esposito the contract was signed by Maresciallo Pasquale Bisogno, on behalf of Colonel Sandro Sampaoli. The Italian Air Force purchased these modules, Esposito said, to avoid a loss in operational capability when the existing modules become unserviceable, as was stated on the license. The phone numbers for Esposito and Bisogno are (39) 06.9129.3866 and (39) 06.9129.3849, respectively. DIBBLE