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As the European Union unravels with the failure of two of its most important members to ratify the constitution, another sign of disunity is worth noting. While other European countries have either shrunk their military budgets or refused to participate in U.S.-led security initiatives, Italy and Britain have been developing their militaries to be compatible with U.S. forces and to sustain large missions abroad. While other EU members participate in U.S.-led military operations under the auspices of NATO, Italy and Britain are committing expeditionary forces alongside U.S. troops, albeit in dramatically smaller numbers.
Italy now has more than 9,200 troops deployed overseas, out of a total of 190,000 in the Italian armed forces. These deployments include 4,500 troops in the Balkans, 3,000 in Iraq and nearly 1,000 in Afghanistan. Italy also maintains forces in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Eritrea, India, Pakistan, Lebanon and Western Sahara. Italian military planning calls for the capability to have 40,000 troops in various cycles of rotation at any given time for deployment abroad -- meaning they are either deployed, preparing to deploy, or coming back from a deployment.
In addition, Italy is procuring equipment to enhance its capability to support operations away from home. The Italian Air Force (AMI) is bringing 22 C-130Js on line, as well as new Boeing 767 tankers, while five Predator unmanned aerial vehicles have already entered service with Italian forces in Iraq. The AMI is seriously considering leasing four C-17s, which would enhance its capability to project and support expeditionary forces.
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