Cablegate: Afghanistan: Italy Receptive to Ana Troop Increase

VZCZCXRO9186
PP RUEHIK RUEHPOD RUEHYG
DE RUEHRO #0835 1851302
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 031302Z JUL 08
FM AMEMBASSY ROME
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0555
INFO RUEHZG/NATO EU COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 0419
RUEHMIL/AMCONSUL MILAN PRIORITY 9449
RUEHFL/AMCONSUL FLORENCE PRIORITY 3106
RUEHNP/AMCONSUL NAPLES PRIORITY 3253
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO PRIORITY 2944
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC PRIORITY
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RHMFIUU/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY

UNCLAS ROME 000835

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PGOV MARR MOPS NATO IT AF
SUBJECT: AFGHANISTAN: ITALY RECEPTIVE TO ANA TROOP INCREASE
IN PRINCIPLE, AWAITS FURTHER DETAILS

REF: STATE 71479

1. Sensitive but unclassified. Please protect accordingly.

2. (SBU) Poloff delivered Reftel demarche on July 3 to
Italian MFA Deputy Afghanistan Coordinator Paola Munzi and
Deputy NATO Office Director Carlo Batori. Munzi said that
the Italian government supports the Afghanistan Compact goal
of an Afghan National Army that is sufficiently trained and
equipped to meet the significant security challenges facing
the country, and agreed that the principle of Afghan
ownership dictates that the Afghan Government is in the best
position to decide how large the ANA should be. Both Munzi
and Batori noted that the proposed increase of the approved
troop level from 80,000 to 134,000 is much larger than
previous increases approved by the JCMB, but looked forward
to hearing further details regarding the expected
contributions of the donor community and the operational
support to be provided by CSTC-A.
SPOGLI

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