VZCZCXRO9367
PP RUEHSL
DE RUEHRO #1072/01 2611734
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 181734Z SEP 09
FM AMEMBASSY ROME
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2678
INFO RUEHZG/NATO EU COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 0528
RUEHMIL/AMCONSUL MILAN PRIORITY 0227
RUEHFL/AMCONSUL FLORENCE PRIORITY 3799
RUEHNP/AMCONSUL NAPLES PRIORITY 4008
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO PRIORITY 3041
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC PRIORITY
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RHMFISS/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ROME 001072 
 
NOFORN 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/19/2019 
TAGS: PREL PGOV MARR MOPS NATO IT AF
SUBJECT: GOI RESOLVE SHAKEN BUT INTACT AFTER SIX SOLDIERS 
KILLED IN AFGHANISTAN 
 
REF: A. ROME DAIL...

SUBJECT: GOI RESOLVE SHAKEN BUT INTACT AFTER SIX SOLDIERS 
KILLED IN AFGHANISTAN 
 
REF: A. ROME DAILY REPORT 9/17/09 
     ¶B. ROME 1040 
 
ROME 00001072  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
Classified By: Deputy Chief of Mission Elizabeth Dibble for Reasons 1.4 
 (B) and (D) 
 
¶1. (C) Summary: The day after an IED attack in Kabul left six 
Italian soldiers dead and four wounded, political and public 
reaction ranged from strong statements in support of the 
mission to outright calls for the troops to come home.  While 
PM Berlusconi told the Ambassador privately that talk of an 
exit strategy was premature, publicly he said that ""we are 
all convinced that our boys should be brought home as soon as 
possible,"" and that ""we had already planned for a significant 
reduction in (election support) forces, and so we will 
proceed in that direction.""  However, he added, ""this is not 
a problem that a country with troops in Afghanistan can 
address by itself, because it would betray the trust of the 
other countries"" present in ISAF.  However, Berlusconi's 
coalition partner Umberto Bossi, head of the Northern League, 
called openly for Italian troops to be brought home by 
Christmas.  MOD La Russa, FM Frattini, and most of the 
leading figures of Center-Left opposition issued strong 
statements supporting the mission, but Frattini echoed 
Berlusconi's statement that the 500 Election Support Forces 
would return ""soon.""  In a September 17 meeting with the 
Ambassador, MOD La Russa reaffirmed Italy's commitment to 
Afghanistan (noting that the U.S. has lost many more troops 
there), but warned that this incident will raise the public 
profile of the Afghan mission in unpredictable ways.  Italy 
will hold funerals for the slain soldiers on September 21, 
which has been be declared a Day of National Mourning.  End 
Summary. 
 
Worst One-Day Death Toll for Italy Since Joining ISAF 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶2. (C) One day after the most deadly attack on Italian forces 
since they deployed to Afghanistan, most mainstream Italian 
politicians from both the governing Center Right coalition 
and the Center Left opposition reaffirmed the importance of 
the mission, while calling for a change in strategy.  The 
attack, which left six Italian paratroopers dead and four 
wounded, raises Italy's overall death toll in Afghanistan to 
21 since the start of the conflict.  Press coverage of the 
incident has been intense, with gruesome photos of the scene 
appearing in the newspapers.  Italian television talk shows 
on September 17 were dominated by coverage of the incident, 
with telejournalists staked outside the homes of the slain 
soldiers and several pundits calling for Italy's 3,100 ISAF 
troops to be brought home.  MOD La Russa went immediately to 
the Senate on September 17 to reaffirm Italy's strong support 
of the mission and to head off accusations of inadequate 
protection for Italian troops, saying that no level of 
armored protection could have withstood such a powerful 
blast. ""The vile and cowardly aggressors that hit in such a 
deceitful way,"" he said, must understand that ""we are firmly 
convinced of our mission and will not turn back.""  After a 
September 18 cabinet meeting, La Russa went further, 
affirming that any talk of an exit strategy only encourages 
terrorists and reiterating the need for Italy to stand by its 
international commitments. 
 
¶3. (C) PM Berlusconi showed somewhat less conviction in 
remarks made on the road in Brussels on September 17: ""We are 
all convinced that our boys should be brought home as soon as 
possible,"" he said; ""we had already planned for a significant 
reduction in (election support) forces, and so we will 
proceed in that direction"" -- a reference to the 500 
temporary Election Support Forces Italy sent prior to the 
August 20 elections and for which Parliament has only 
approved funding through the end of October.  However, he 
added, ""this is not a problem that a country with troops in 
Afghanistan can address by itself, because it would betray 
the trust of the other countries"" present in ISAF. 
Berlusconi's coalition partner Umberto Bossi, head of the 
Northern League, called openly for Italian troops to be 
brought home by Christmas.  (Note: Bossi has been sounding 
this note for several months, primarily for political effect. 
 He has never, however, suggested that his support of the 
government is contingent on this issue.  End note.)  Center 
 
ROME 00001072  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
Left opposition leaders, including Massimo D'Alema, Piero 
Fassino, and Francesco Rutelli, all made statements in favor 
of continued Italian participation in ISAF. 
 
Ambassador Reassured in Meetings with La Russa, Berlusconi 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶4. (C) MOD La Russa met with the Ambassador on September 17 
shortly after his appearance before the Senate. La Russa 
thanked the Ambassador for U.S. expressions of condolence and 
noted that U.S. forces have made bigger sacrifices.  He said 
Italy will remain in ISAF despite this incident but cautioned 
that Italy is an ""emotional country."" While this factor has 
not thus far resulted in significant criticism of the 
mission, the loss of six soldiers would raise the profile of 
the conflict in public opinion.  La Russa also noted that the 
U.S. and Italy are closer than ever because the anti-U.S. far 
left has been marginalized by its failure to secure seats in 
Parliament in the April 2008 elections.  MOD Political 
Adviser Alessandro Ruben told Pol M/C separately that the 
incident underscores the urgent need for a meeting between 
Secretary Gates and MOD La Russa as soon as possible, both to 
publicly bolster the GOI (especially the Minister who has 
been most vocal in supporting Italy's ISAF participation) as 
well as to read a key GOI interlocutor into U.S. strategic 
planning for the future (Ref B). 
 
¶5. (C) In his initial call on PM Berlusconi on September 18, 
the Ambassador expressed USG condolences.  Berlusconi said he 
had been up almost the entire night in Cabinet deliberations 
dealing with the aftermath of the incident.  He  reassured 
the Ambassador that Italy remained committed to Afghanistan 
and that the GOI's position was not that NATO should look for 
an exit strategy but rather a ""transition strategy"" that 
would lead to a more comprehensive approach reflecting real 
needs on the ground. 
 
¶6. (C//NF) Center Right (PDL) and Center Left (PD) contacts 
continue to assure us of the importance and stability of the 
mission.  In reaction to the bombing, PDL Member of 
Parliament Manuela Repetti told us that Italy was committed 
to the mission more than ever, and she looked forward to her 
next fact-finding trip to Afghanistan.  A top PDL 
parliamentary aide said that there is no question about 
strong and continued PDL and PD support for the mission. He 
did, however, express concern about the growing volume of the 
Northern League's rhetoric on the mission. He said that Bossi 
is playing a double game, in which he is speaking to his 
electorate out of one side of his mouth, while Lega will 
likely continue to vote for the mission.  Still, he expressed 
concern about the impact of having a vocal and very effective 
communicator like Bossi and other Lega leaders talking about 
an exit strategy.  PD Member of Parliament Renzo Lusetti 
confirmed that his party considers a continued, robust 
Afghanistan mission indispensable.  He noted that it is much 
easier to take strong foreign policy positions now that the 
former Communists are no longer in Parliament. 
¶7. (C) Comment:  PM Berlusconi was in power during the 2003 
bombing in Nassiriya, Iraq, an event that killed nineteen 
Italian soldiers and fed a wave of public opposition to the 
war that contributed to his eventual electoral defeat in 
¶2006.  His vacillating reaction to Thursday's bombing clearly 
reflects his this experience, which left him with an 
instinctive political aversion to casualties.  He is also 
feeling the heat of an increasingly emboldened coalition 
partner who aims to cut into his voting base in upcoming 
regional elections next spring.  Unlike Italy's participation 
in the Iraq war, the Italian mission in Afghanistan enjoys 
strong bipartisan backing and there is little reason to fear 
a large-scale Italian pullout.  Maintaining or strengthening 
current troop levels, however, will likely become 
increasingly difficult, as Berlusconi feels the pressure of 
Bossi's ""bring the boys home"" rhetoric, as well as Finance 
Minister Tremonti's demands for ever more cuts in the defense 
and foreign aid budgets.  Sustaining Italian commitment in 
Afghanistan will require more hand-holding by the U.S. in 
months to come, especially at senior levels.  End Comment. 
 
THORNE 
"