Introduction to translation

With the Russian invasion of Ukraine, talk of organizing defense missions in NATO is gaining increasing importance.

In this article, Elizabeth Brau, a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, talks about Italy's prominent role in this regard as the faithful guardian of NATO's skies, but this guard performs its mission in complete silence, and with as little noise as possible.

translation text

We have heard much ado about the various weapons being sent by NATO member states to Ukraine, as well as about the 5,000 helmets Germany has sent, but we don't hear enough, if anything at all, about Italy's pivotal role in regulating the atmosphere. over the Black Sea, and its recent efforts to control the airspace of the Baltic states (Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia)*, and its naval patrols along and across the Mediterranean via its own aircraft carrier.

Yes, Italy has launched its own role as the spearhead of NATO's air control programmes, but because Rome doesn't talk much about its patrols, its heavy-handed efforts in this area do not appear on the radar.

Now, as the crisis between Russia and Ukraine has reached its climax, and the Russian and Ukrainian Black Sea lands are so dangerous that insurance companies have put them on their blacklist;

Italian Eurofighters and F-35 fighters are flying a little south from the fire of the ongoing battle, securing Romanian airspace over the Black Sea alongside the air forces of Romania and Germany, a mission as part of his "enhanced air control" efforts. NATO after Russia seized Crimea and helped separatists establish control in eastern Ukraine starting in 2014.

atmosphere maestro

Italy led the efforts to use F-35 fighters in NATO air missions, and was the first country to actually fly it during its patrols over Iceland and Estonia.

Manfred Roedenbach, spokesman for NATO's Joint Air Command, spoke to me: “Italy is one of the most important contributors to NATO's air-control missions across Europe, and it is a strong signal of Italy's capabilities and commitment to the alliance. In addition, it protects its airspace around the clock. Throughout the year, using advanced "Eurofighter" aircraft and F-35 fighters, the Italian Air Force also participates in NATO air control missions in the Baltic region and with our allies in Iceland, Bulgaria, Slovenia, North Macedonia and Montenegro. Italy has led the efforts to use F-35 fighters. In NATO air missions, it was the first country to actually fly it during its patrols over Iceland and Estonia, and it successfully intercepted a (Russian transport) plane already during a mission over the Baltic region last year.

Today, the Italian F-35 fighters fly in their patrols over the Mediterranean by the Italian aircraft carrier "Cavour", in a joint mission with battle groups on the French aircraft carrier "Charles de Gaulle" and the American aircraft carrier "USS Harry Truman".

It should be noted here that Italy is the only European country that owns an aircraft carrier and F-35 fighters at the same time, as France already has an aircraft carrier, but it does not have F-35 fighters, while the Netherlands and Norway have the most modern fighter in the world without An aircraft carrier, and Germany does not own either of them, and therefore Italy is an air fulcrum for NATO, and we do not exaggerate if we say that it is the maestro of NATO's atmosphere.

Today, Italy has more than 9,000 officers from its armed forces deployed in 34 military missions in 21 countries, including 1,100 in Iraq, and more than 600 in Kosovo (Italy has a great interest in Balkan security due to its historical relations and geographical proximity to it)*.

Compare that with Germany, which has about 3,000 soldiers in 11 countries.

Italy - then - plays a central role in protecting NATO's airspace, which is something that has a long history, as indicated by "Vincenzo Camporini", a retired general and combat pilot in the Italian forces and a former commander of its air forces and defense operations, as he noted: "There is a long history of talking about Soldiers involved in peace missions within the corridors of Italian politics, it is a legacy from the Cold War when the Communist Party gained political weight in the country, as well as a legacy stemming from the role of the Catholic Church in the Vatican, as the Pope talks about peace constantly.

silent guard

Camporini recalls: “Our pilots dropped bombs over Serbia, and the politicians in Italy said that this was an integrated defense among NATO allies.

The landmark NATO air strikes on Serbia in the 1990s were launched by the coalition to disrupt Serbian attacks on minorities in Kosovo, and involved more than 38,000 missions by NATO pilots, including Italians.

Camporini recalled, “Our pilots dropped bombs over Serbia, and the politicians in Italy said it was [integrated defense] (among NATO allies)*, and the pilots under my command got angry about this, and I remember one of my fighters telling me we were risking our lives.” without anyone knowing about us."

When Camporini was the commander of defense operations during the war in Afghanistan, Italian forces killed a number of Taliban fighters, and the defense minister asked him what would happen when Italian public opinion became known. "I told him, we can say that we neutralized them," Camporini said.

So, the political culture in Italy is completely averse to talking about military realities, so it is not surprising that its governments did not highlight their huge contributions to NATO and its air efforts, even though the air-control missions do not lead to casualties.

However, being away from the spotlight does not diminish the importance of the role that Italy plays in the air and on the ground as well. On the contrary, while NATO’s atmosphere becomes more vulnerable to penetration from its opponents, the alliance needs missions to control the atmosphere more than ever.

In 2021, NATO fighters flew from their bases 370 times in response to breaches or suspicions of penetration from the coalition's opponents, and most of them took place in the Baltic airspace, and 80% of them included Russian aviation.

It seems that successive Italian governments have decided that contributing to NATO's air efforts is a law of Italy's military laws, as is sending large numbers of its soldiers to numerous NATO, United Nations and European Union missions around the Mediterranean and other regions around the world.

It also seems that Italian politicians are satisfied that the millions of those who vote for them inside Italy do not know about their huge and influential role. What matters is that the two most important parties for Rome are well aware of its military efforts: its allies in NATO, and NATO's opponents on the opposite side.

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Translation: Noor Khairy

This report is compiled from Defense One and does not necessarily reflect the website of Meydan.