The Italian pledge to the UN mission in Lebanon was warmly welcomed by the Israeli government and by Israelis in general.

But something struck me: While expressing their appreciation, some Israeli friends seemed surprised to discover Italy in the forefront of a heavy military commitment. Associating Italy more with art and soccer than with a warrior tradition, they wondered why we decided to get involved, whether we will perform effectively and whether we will keep going if things get tough.

Here are some pieces of information that I provided to those friends. Maybe somebody else will find them interesting.

	Advertisement

1. True, Italy is not a warrior country: History confirms that Italians do not like war, and particularly when the cause is not worthy. But they have a longstanding military tradition, pretty effective armed forces and long experience in dealing with difficult foreign theaters. During the last half century, Italy has made its forces available for many peacekeeping and peace enforcement operations. All in all, 10,000 Italian troops are presently serving in 28 international missions.

2. The missions engaged in so far have not dealt only with monitoring the implementation of peace agreements (like, for instance, the one between Israel and Egypt). Indeed, in most cases, our task was to ensure law and order in non-stabilized environments, entailing the need for "robust" activity. The toll we paid for our commitment is high: To date, some 70 Italian soldiers have lost their lives while serving in peacekeeping or peace enforcement.

3. Let me recall some of the theaters where we have been or are still working. Some 2,300 Italians were in Beirut from 1982 to 1984. In 1992-94, 2,500 of our soldiers were deployed in the Somali hell (and were the last ones to leave). In 1993-95, a contingent of 1,000 men controlled Mozambique to ensure the end of the civil war. In 1997, 2,800 Italian troops helped the Albanian government to impose its authority on the anarchy and organized crime that prevailed in that country. Since 1996, we have been injecting troops by the thousands in order to deal with the turbulent aftermaths of the wars in Bosnia and Kosovo (even nowadays, we maintain 3,200 soldiers in the NATO and EU missions there). Following 9/11, Italians have operated, in a "robust" mode, in Afghanistan (where 1,000 men took part in the American-led mission Enduring Freedom and 1,400 soldiers are still serving within the ISAF mission) and in Iraq (where 2,500 troops will end their mandate next autumn).

4. In Italy, conscription ended in 2004. Today, our armed forces are totally professional. For peacekeeping operations we can provide, among other things, a special asset: the Carabinieri Corps. In addition to being a full-fledged fighting force, the Carabinieri (Riflers) add a unique capability in enforcing public order by combining military strength and policing expertise.

5. This past weekend, 1,000 Italian troops landed on the coast of Tyre. A further 1,500 men (and eventually even more) will be deployed in Lebanon in the next two months. Their mandate is established by Resolution 1701. Together with other UNIFIL forces, they will assist the Lebanese Army in imposing the authority of the Lebanese government south of the Litani River and banning any other armed force. They will assist the Lebanese Army in preventing the smuggling of weapons into Lebanon. As Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema put it, should new weapons come from Syria, the international community will learn of it and will not remain passive.

6. What will happen after the first Italian casualty? Will we fly away? Our past record in peacekeeping says NO. We know that we are taking a significant risk, but this is not the first time. We accept the risk because we deem it worthwhile for the sake of peace in the Middle East. We believe that peace is worth its price. And it is essential that everybody - the international partners as well as the parties directly involved - be willing to pay his share.

The writer is Italy's ambassador to Israel.