This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

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