Italian defence minister Lorenzo Guerini is on a roll. Following recent meetings with his Turkish and French colleagues, he flew to Madrid to meet his Spanish counterpart, Margarita Robles, on Monday.
The pair expressed their shared vision for a stronger Southern front within the framework of the NATO Alliance. “I am certain about [Italy and Spain’s] common interests, including all the initiatives that have begun to reinforce the Alliance’s Southern flank,” declared Mr. Guerini.
They also renewed calls to further the development of joint European defence projects such as Pesco and EDF, the funding of which is still being discussed by EU member states.
Last May both ministers, together with their German and French colleagues Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer and Florence Parly, co-signed a letter addressed to the EU’s High Representative Josep Borrell. The four pushed to maintain high ambitions for common European defence across the bloc.
Despite the lack of actual deployments, it seems as Spain is interested in joining Irini, a European naval operation mainly focused on enforcing the UN arms embargo on Libya. France has already contributed with a frigate, and Italy is readying to allocate some forces. During the meeting Mr. Guerini recalled Spain’s “important and precious contribution” to Irini’s predecessor, operation Sophia.
Alongside European missions, NATO remains active in the Mediterranean, although not as much as Spain and Italy would like it to be. NATO and the EU are currently dealing with the Libyan crisis and international laws in the Eastern Med – both issues towards which Turkey, also a member of NATO, has a wildly different approach than the rest of the Alliance.
Turkey’s alleged interventionism in Libya – where European countries are pushing for a ceasefire and diplomacy – as well as its unwarranted drillings in Cypriot waters have recently inflamed tensions with France. The latter has consequently decided to temporarily suspend its support for NATO operation Sea Guardian and perhaps devolve extra resources to European efforts.
The Spanish and Italian defence ministers highlighted their support for common military operations in North Africa as well as the Middle East. Both countries maintain a few thousand soldiers in Iraq and Lebanon in an effort to stabilise the region and aid the fight against Daesh, also known as the Islamic State (IS).
Mr. Guerini stressed that Italy will continue to support operation Inherent Resolve, which is sustained by a US-led coalition, and contribute to the strengthening of NATO’s Mission in Iraq. He also voiced Italy’s intention to keep international forces on the ground in Afghanistan and Lebanon, a decision shared by the rest of NATO.
