Italy forced to backtrack on Iraq

[leftchick]

http://tvnz.co.nz/view/news_world_story_skin/480072?format=html

"George W Bush and Tony Blair say 'Stop Berlusconi'," read the headline in the centre-left opposition daily La Repubblica.

US President Bush and British Prime Minister Blair reacted to Berlusconi's announcement by saying that no troop withdrawal from Iraq has been ordered and that the Italian leader would not act unilaterally.

Berlusconi then qualified his remarks on pulling Italy's 3,300 soldiers out of southern Iraq in about six months, calling it "a wish".

"If it isn't possible, it isn't possible. The disengagement must be co-ordinated with the allies," he said.

The left-wing daily Il Manifesto said Berlusconi had flip-flopped throughout the day, with the final version of his remarks making it clear that for the moment "the start of the (troop) withdrawal announced with all solemnity on television was only a wish".

[ElectroPrincess]

1. Makes you wonder what the infamous "they" have over Berlusconi?

Bribery?

Blackmail?

Coercion?

Threats to self or family?

Anyone? Anyone?

[Frederik]

4. Video of Silvio with Gannon?

[grasswire]

18. P-2

That's what they have over him.

[grasswire]

19. P-2 and Italy

Here's a start:

http://www.freemasonrywatch.org/p2_new.html

A snip:

In his testimony given last year before the Commissione Stragi (Commission on terrorist massacres), General Maletti, who in order to escape justice took refuge in South Africa under apartheid, said that the creation of "second generation Red Brigades" was discussed at the highest level of the Italian government. He did not deny that some of their members were trained at Campo Maraggiu, in Sardinia. This was the secret training ground for the Gladio forces, which were linked to a network of fascist organisations. The favourite of the CIA, and undoubtedly of Henry Kissinger himself, was Ordine Nuovo, led by Pino Rauti, the avowed admirer of Hitler and Himmler. Only last year Rauti made an electoral deal with Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia. At the very top of the secret plans however was the fascist Licio Gelli, head of the notorious P2 Masonic Lodge.

Gelli, known to the CIA and friendly with the former US President Ronald Reagan, recruited about 1,200 members, including Maletti and other heads of the secret services and the military. P2 was later described by an investigative commission as a "government within the government". It was a subversive organisation, a military coup in waiting, with men ready to take control of key structures throughout the country. An attempted coup did in fact take place during the night of 7-8 December 1970, when the Home Office in Rome was briefly taken over. Known as the "Borghese coup", it was called off at the last minute apparently because Gelli did not get the green light from the United States.

On the list of P2 members found in Gelli's villa in Tuscany was the name of Berlusconi. Among the many mysteries in the tycoon's early career concerning the source of the funds that enabled him to buy estates in Milan and later launch his television channels with licences given to him by the corrupt Christian Democratic-Socialist government, the Gelli link highlights the Gladio-P2-Berlusconi-CIA jigsaw.

Berlusconi is now flanked by deputy Prime Minister Gianfranco Fini, the former secretary of the fascist MSI (Movimento Sociale Italiano), and by Umberto Bossi of the racist Northern League. The rise of what has been described as the most dangerous political triad in Europe appears to be the successful fruition of a long sought objective. "The CIA wanted to assist nationalism with the extreme-right contribution", declared Maletti to the Commission.

Given the efforts of both the United States and Britain in setting up the Gladio network in Italy in 1949, which relied on fascists as the most trusted soldiers to keep the Communists at bay, it would seem that Prime Minister Tony Blair's steadfast support for and efforts to give legitimacy to Berlusconi's government, even when it appears anomalous and disreputable in the eyes of the world, is just a rerun of old alliances outside parliamentary democracy going back more than 50 years.

[w4rma]

22. Have *on* him? Berlusconi is an ultra-wealthy corporatist. He owns nearly

all of the media in Italy. He's one of "them". He's *with* "them". He's been fighing against popular opinion to give cover for Bush to keep troops in Iraq. This incident hurt his stranglehold on power in Italy and that's the *only* reason he made *any* noises about pulling out.

[ausiedownunderground]

2. With friend's like this Berlusconi's definately "Toast"!

What are The Smirking Chimp and Bliar doing to their only other serious friend in Europe. You can only pull out when we tell you?? WTF!! Berlusconi must be wishing he had hair to pull out!

[ebayfool]

3. Wonder if Italy knows that Berlusconi has to get *ush & Blair's ...

permission to wipe his hinney? Since when does another nation have to ask if it's possible to withdraw their own troops?

[NNN0LHI]

6. This could only happen to a nation still under US occupation like Italy is

And has been since WW II? Wonder how our Italian subjects feel about this?

Don

[0007]

5. This will indeed get interesting!

[katinmn]

7. Bush is lending Karen Hughes to Berlusconi for a special assignment

She will be in charge of straightening out the Italians' perception of America and the Iraq war.

[rodeodance]

13. te he -good one

[katinmn]

15. thanks.

:hi:

[dbt]

8. I'm sure the Italian people will take this very calmly.

Il Douchebag!

:eyes:

[Massachusetts]

9. The Berlusconi and Bushit Opera Act 3

[natrat]

10. wtf why dont they vote him out

or do theu have diebold too

[Binka]

11. Italian Diebold=Mafia

Berlu is loathed by the vast majority of Italians but the Mafia keeps him in power. They are Italy's largest/most powerful corporation if you will and very difficult to beat.

I'm still convinced the mafia and Opus Dei put the hit on Nicola Calipari. Sgrena was and is a red herring.

Don has it right up thread do you folks realize how many military installations are strewn through Italy? It is mind boggling this is our colony if you will.

When I went shopping this morning I wore my Canadian track suit. I still got the evil eye. Fuck Bush and Blair and Berlu. BASTARDS!

[Say_What]

20. US bases in Italia

In a country as small as Italy--six bases, and about 15 in Germany!

Aviano Air Base, Aviano, Pordenone, Italy
Ghedi Air Base, Vicenza, Italy
San Vito dei Normanni Air Station, Brindisi, Italy
La Maddalena Naval Support Activity, Sardinia, La Maddalena, Italy
Naples Naval Support Activity, Naples, Italy
Sigonella Naval Air Station, Sigonella, Sicily, Italy

http://www.globemaster.de/regbases.html

[confludemocrat]

12. Bush to Berlusconi: either way there will be payback

This is what Bush must have told him after his initial announcement. So what is Berlusconi going to do when he hears that?

Or he was simply lying when he claimed they would be withdrawing--to help prevent big losses their upcoming regional elections.

[lonestarnot]

14. WTF Now Italy no longer free either???? How many more days left of

these assholes! Are we going to be able to take it? Yes fight! Never surrender!

[Jose Diablo]

16. I don't think the Italian people will be happy

when they finally internalize the idea that a Pope was 'snuffed' by P2. Sure it's easy to blow-off the idea, but eventually, they will connect. When they do connect and believe it, that fat peckerwood will meet the same fate as the previous Italian fascist. He will be hung and literally torn limb by limb by an uncontrollable mob.

[Binka]

17. The Italians Are Farked Off

Really Pissed!

[applegrove]

21. India cannot build a pipeline, Italy cannot withdraw. My my we are

having a fun time controlling the world.

[Az_lefty]

23. Flip Floppin like a fish out of water.....

these neocons would be funny to watch if the situation wasn't so serious.

[cal04]

24. Berlusconi under fire at home

Berlusconi has taken a battering from the press and opposition parties, which said he had been forced into an ignominious climbdown by his more powerful allies in Washington and London over his stated intention to withdraw Rome's troops from Iraq.

Opposition parties have charged that Berlusconi's "troops home" comment are a cynical ploy to boost support for his flagging Forza Italia party ahead of the polls, seen as an important indicator for next year's general elections. "In what I said there is no possibility of seeing a U-turn, a change, something which conflicted with what I have always told the allies," insisted Berlusconi. He went from announcing he would begin withdrawing troops from Iraq in September in a television chat show Tuesday night to saying a day later -- after a phone call from Bush -- that he "hopes" he will be able to withdraw his forces. The episode is particularly damaging to Berlusconi's reputation because since his election in 2001 he has pledged to make Italy a more important player in Europe and the world.

Opposition leader Romano Prodi said Berlusconi had been ignominiously "called to order" by Bush. "It's not possible that one evening you have a specific plan on the withdrawal of the troops and that 24 hours later, you back-track because you've been called to order," Prodi said, accusing Berlusconi of damaging Italy's "dignity". The press said the 68-year-old prime minister had been forced to back-track after Bush had told him to toe the coalition line on Iraq.


The conservative Corriere della Sera said the US and British leaders had "put the brakes on" their Italian counterpart. "In a serious country the head of government cannot allow himself to make statements so ambiguous when it concerns the life and death of so many human beings," the newspaper said.
The left-wing La Repubblica, which said Bush and Blair had "stopped" Berlusconi, said Berlusconi's excuse to Bush "has not diluted the feeling of an Italian botch-up."

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1514&ncid=732&e=4&u=/afp/20050317/wl_mideast_afp/italyiraqtroops