Despite the fact that Italy hosts almost half of the remaining estimated 150_200 US tactical nuclear weapons (TNW) that are currently deployed in Europe, case studies of Italy have been largely neglected. The article seeks to fill that gap by outlining the key elements of Italy’s position regarding the presence, role, and future of TNW in Italy. By considering both the military and political-symbolic dimensions of TNW, the author argues that Italy has largely embraced the process of the devaluation of nuclear weapons; however, this is offset by the country’s determination to preserve the principles of solidarity and the indivisibility of Euro-Atlantic security. By making the alliance’s cohesion a priority, Italy appears willing to postpone the complete elimination of TNW from its territory if necessary; despite this, Italy otherwise considers TNW to be not only weapons of little intrinsic value but also obstacles to the global nuclear disarmament program that it strongly supports.

Tactical Nuclear Weapons in Italy: Striking a balance between disarmament aspirations and alliance obligations / Foradori, Paolo. - In: THE NONPROLIFERATION REVIEW. - ISSN 1073-6700. - STAMPA. - 19:1(2012), pp. 13-29. [10.1080/10736700.2012.655083]

Tactical Nuclear Weapons in Italy: Striking a balance between disarmament aspirations and alliance obligations

Foradori, Paolo
2012-01-01

Abstract

Despite the fact that Italy hosts almost half of the remaining estimated 150_200 US tactical nuclear weapons (TNW) that are currently deployed in Europe, case studies of Italy have been largely neglected. The article seeks to fill that gap by outlining the key elements of Italy’s position regarding the presence, role, and future of TNW in Italy. By considering both the military and political-symbolic dimensions of TNW, the author argues that Italy has largely embraced the process of the devaluation of nuclear weapons; however, this is offset by the country’s determination to preserve the principles of solidarity and the indivisibility of Euro-Atlantic security. By making the alliance’s cohesion a priority, Italy appears willing to postpone the complete elimination of TNW from its territory if necessary; despite this, Italy otherwise considers TNW to be not only weapons of little intrinsic value but also obstacles to the global nuclear disarmament program that it strongly supports.
2012
1
Foradori, Paolo
Tactical Nuclear Weapons in Italy: Striking a balance between disarmament aspirations and alliance obligations / Foradori, Paolo. - In: THE NONPROLIFERATION REVIEW. - ISSN 1073-6700. - STAMPA. - 19:1(2012), pp. 13-29. [10.1080/10736700.2012.655083]
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11572/90715
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