Le forze italiane in missione all'estero: trend e rischi

As of 2020, Italy deploys abroad about 7,300 troops, spread out in 35 missions in 24 countries in Europe, greater Middle East, and increasingly in Africa. The main deployments are in Lebanon, Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo, Libya, Niger and Somalia. Such a commitment is a constant feature of Italy’s defence policy, and constitutes a demanding, long term effort for the armed forces. Recently, Italian military on the ground has had to face dramatic and sudden threat’s escalation, and particularly in Africa and Lebanon cannot rely on the US as mission’s framework nation. Such a situation brings new and important implications for the Italian operations’ planning and conduct, rules of engagement, military training and logistics, as well as the equipment to procure and maintain.

Paper prepared for the seminar “La protezione delle forze armate nei teatri operativi” organised by the IAI in Rome on 30 January 2020 and revised in the light of the debate held there.