This morning the Minister of Defense, Senator Roberta Pinotti, met with the respective Secretary of Defense of the United Kingdom, Sir Michael Fallon, at the Officers' Club of the Armed Forces of Italy. In the press conference following the meeting, the two talked about how important and solid the relations between the two countries are, highlighting the fact that, simultaneously with their meeting, the British Prime Minister, Theresa May and the Italian Prime Minister, Paolo Gentiloni, were holding a meeting in London.
Minister Pinotti opened his speech by recalling that the United Kingdom, as Fallon later confirmed, will remain in Europe, despite the Brexit. How will he stay there? Obviously with regard to the defense and security of the continent. "The United Kingdom has given full availability to remain available with regard to safety", This is what the minister said. Even Fallon has assured that the United Kingdom will remain at the center of all the military and political events that concern the security of the European continent, because of consequence they too would be hit to the full.
The other major challenge that the two respective defense ministers spoke about is the NATO one, which remains the cornerstone of all defense policies to be implemented, starting with the two major problems facing Europe: from the north -East Russia and from south-east Islamic terrorism. On the first point, Fallon expressed his desire to stop the possible expansionist aims of Putin, with the United Kingdom deploying soldiers in Estonia and Poland and, soon, will also deploy air squadrons in Romania, all to contain Russia. Precisely on the "containment" of Russia and the possibility of rapid reaction by NATO troops, first Fallon then Pinotti, they spoke of the importance of the VJTF (Very High Readiness Joint Task Force), which will see the handover of the command, precisely between the United Kingdom and Italy.
On the second point, namely the fight against terrorism, both have taken stock of how important it is for NATO, especially for the major countries adhering to the Atlantic Alliance, cooperation in all fields, from intelligence to international operations. Europe in this, according to Fallon, is taking the right path, especially after the implementation plan proposed by Mogherini and strongly supported by Italy, which provides for an increase in military cooperation between the various European nations. This cooperation, so important and so central to the press conference, must also be extended to NATO, which can never be duplicated and replaced, a very important concept for both, by a possible European Army.
NATO, which after the election of Trump in the United States of America, has been questioned by the same new president. Glide quickly Fallon: "There are differences between what is said in the election campaign and what is actually done". To confirm this, both have spoken to the new US defense secretary, John Mattis, stating that for Trump, therefore for the United States, the Atlantic Alliance is essential on everything. The request is always the same: to reach the 2% spending in defense. A distant goal in Italy, as Pinotti declared, while reached in the United Kingdom.
However, from the press conference a communion of ideas and intentions emerged between the two ministers, both intent on maintaining a very strong collaboration both in the military and in the industrial field, even after the path that will lead the United Kingdom out from the European Union. The fight against terrorism, the gaze towards greater spaces of collaboration and the iron will to "contain" Russia at all costs mean that between Italy and the United Kingdom there is a solid relationship that is unlikely to be tarnished by future events. A vision of the world at 360 ° which, among other things, is also shared by all NATO member countries and by the United States of America.
