15/03/2006
stampa
invia
Six AMX reconnaissance strike fighters from the Italian Air Force will be stationed
“shortly” in Afghanistan as part of the International Security Assistance Force
(ISAF) mission under NATO. The move was announced by General Fabrizio Castagnetti,
head of Interforce Operations Command (COI), which oversees all Italian military
operations abroad. The announcement was made on 8 February in Rome at a conference
organized by the Christian Democratic Union party (UDC) on “humanitarian aspects
of Italian military operations abroad,” which was held in Palazzo Marini, home
of the Italian House of Representatives.
General Castagnetti: “AMX are for the war on drugs.” Or at least, if you talk about them, be careful what you say and make it sound
good so you don’t make waves.
Military blog: “Why don’t they tell the truth?”. But those in the military and other experts writing for the blog “Pagine di
Difesa” (Defense Pages) have little doubt about the planes’ real purpose and are
offended by what they feel are hypocritical attempts to hide the truth. “They
couldn’t say that they were going for close air support and ground attack with
precision-guided munitions… they just couldn’t bring themselves to do it!!,” writes
one. And another: “It seems clear that what they’re saying about opium is just
something to keep peace activists quiet. Our AMX planes are simply going to replace
the six ISAF F-16s that are there now”. “I’m familiar with the “Pagine di Difesa”
blog,” General Fabio Mini told us, “it’s the same one where friends of the Italian
helicopter pilot killed in Iraq wrote in, and everything they said was true. So
in this case we’re talking about pilots and soldiers, enlisted men and women who
know what they’re talking about.”
Lieutenant says “It’s a load of crap.” We spoke by telephone with one of the bloggers, a lieutenant on leave who wanted
to remain anonymous. According to him, “taking pictures of opium fields with AMX
is like blowing your nose with a vacuum cleaner. It’s a joke, a complete load
of crap. Not even my two-year-old son would believe it. Those aircraft are being
sent for combat missions. The AMX is an airplane designed for ground attack—period.
According to the schedule set by ISAF, we are obligated to replace attack aircraft
from other countries, in this case the Norwegian F-16s. Of course, AMX are not
exactly the same thing… but that’s what we have to send… just to show they can
be useful. There are already more than enough American satellites to take pictures
of the opium fields.”
Colonel Magnani: “Mission against drugs and terrorism.” Colonel Amadeo Magnani doesn’t see it this way. He’s Chief of general staff
for the Public Information and Communications Office of the Italian Air Force
and former commander of the fifth squadron unit. “Aerial photographic reconnaissance
missions were what I did every day and so I know how important they are, because
they provide visual information that no satellite—however powerful—can provide.
They get pictures of the opium fields from low altitudes and at different angles
from what a satellite can give you from straight up. It’s indispensable for fighting
drug trafficking, which obviously helps fight terrorism since it’s money from
drugs that the Taliban uses to buy weapons.”
General Staff Defense Chief: “Defensive actions not ruled out.” The head of the Public Information section for Defense General Staff, Colonel
Massimo Fogari, doesn’t rule out the possibility that the AMX will be used in
combat missions, but only defensive—not for attack.
Andrea Nativi: “Bombing only for defensive purposes.” Along these same lines, Andrea Nativi, military expert and director of the Italian
Defense Journal (Rivista Italiana di Difesa), doesn’t exclude the possibility
of combat missions for Italian airplanes, but only for defense, not to attack.
NATO SHAPE Commando: “In extreme cases they would support Enduring Freedom.” Canadian Lieutenant Colonel Réjean Duchesneau, head of Supreme Headquarters
Allied Powers Europe’s (SHAPE) press office for NATO in Brussels, tells us that
deployment of the six Italian AMX aircraft in Afghanistan is still being considered
by NATO. He also explained that if and when accepted, the Italian planes will
have the same assignment as the aircraft they replace, which does not leave out
combat missions, including support for the US military operation “Enduring Freedom.”
Norwegians tell it like it is… and how one Dutch F-16 was used. Four months ago, the Norwegian Defense Minister issued a statement announcing
deployment of F-16s as part of the ISAF mission that confirms Lieutenant Colonel
Duchesneau’s remarks. “Their assignment will be to guarantee combat aircraft availability
for ISAF capable of making their presence known (for deterrence, editor’s note)
and to provide air support for ground troops in critical situations. Furthermore,
in emergency situations, aircraft under ISAF command may also provide assistance
to ground forces in the US operation ‘Enduring Freedom.’”
stampainvia
Italy to station fighter-bombers in Afghanistan. Their official mission to photograph poppy fields. But there’s more to it…
Six AMX reconnaissance strike fighters from the Italian Air Force will be stationed
“shortly” in Afghanistan as part of the International Security Assistance Force
(ISAF) mission under NATO. The move was announced by General Fabrizio Castagnetti,
head of Interforce Operations Command (COI), which oversees all Italian military
operations abroad. The announcement was made on 8 February in Rome at a conference
organized by the Christian Democratic Union party (UDC) on “humanitarian aspects
of Italian military operations abroad,” which was held in Palazzo Marini, home
of the Italian House of Representatives.
This would be the first abroad deployment of Italian military aircraft since
the 1991 Gulf war (airplanes for the raids on Serbia took off directly from Italian
soil and the Harrier aircraft involved in the initial phases of the Afghanistan
war were launched from the carrier Garibaldi).
Deployment of fighter-bombers represents a qualitative increase of Italian military
involvement in Afghanistan, a “theater of operations” that has become extremely
dangerous on account of renewed armed resistance from the Taliban (two thousand
deaths in 2005, and already almost three hundred in the first two months of 2006).
But apart from a brief Italian press bureau (Ansa) release, the news has gone
almost completely unobserved. Could it be because it’s just better not to talk
about some things in an election year?
General Castagnetti: “AMX are for the war on drugs.” Or at least, if you talk about them, be careful what you say and make it sound
good so you don’t make waves.The official story of why these aircraft are being used is oddly reassuring:
they are not going to be used to fight the Taliban, just to take pictures of poppy,
which is used to make opium. At the Rome conference, General Castagnetti stopped
short of saying the AMX planes would be used in battle: they will be used for
intelligence purposes (photographic reconnaissance) and “they might also be used
to fight drug trafficking by helping us identify poppy fields, the source of opium
production.” Come again?: they might also be used… Which means that they are going
to be used primarily for something else. The question is ‘what’?
Military blog: “Why don’t they tell the truth?”. But those in the military and other experts writing for the blog “Pagine di
Difesa” (Defense Pages) have little doubt about the planes’ real purpose and are
offended by what they feel are hypocritical attempts to hide the truth. “They
couldn’t say that they were going for close air support and ground attack with
precision-guided munitions… they just couldn’t bring themselves to do it!!,” writes
one. And another: “It seems clear that what they’re saying about opium is just
something to keep peace activists quiet. Our AMX planes are simply going to replace
the six ISAF F-16s that are there now”. “I’m familiar with the “Pagine di Difesa”
blog,” General Fabio Mini told us, “it’s the same one where friends of the Italian
helicopter pilot killed in Iraq wrote in, and everything they said was true. So
in this case we’re talking about pilots and soldiers, enlisted men and women who
know what they’re talking about.”Lieutenant says “It’s a load of crap.” We spoke by telephone with one of the bloggers, a lieutenant on leave who wanted
to remain anonymous. According to him, “taking pictures of opium fields with AMX
is like blowing your nose with a vacuum cleaner. It’s a joke, a complete load
of crap. Not even my two-year-old son would believe it. Those aircraft are being
sent for combat missions. The AMX is an airplane designed for ground attack—period.
According to the schedule set by ISAF, we are obligated to replace attack aircraft
from other countries, in this case the Norwegian F-16s. Of course, AMX are not
exactly the same thing… but that’s what we have to send… just to show they can
be useful. There are already more than enough American satellites to take pictures
of the opium fields.”Colonel Magnani: “Mission against drugs and terrorism.” Colonel Amadeo Magnani doesn’t see it this way. He’s Chief of general staff
for the Public Information and Communications Office of the Italian Air Force
and former commander of the fifth squadron unit. “Aerial photographic reconnaissance
missions were what I did every day and so I know how important they are, because
they provide visual information that no satellite—however powerful—can provide.
They get pictures of the opium fields from low altitudes and at different angles
from what a satellite can give you from straight up. It’s indispensable for fighting
drug trafficking, which obviously helps fight terrorism since it’s money from
drugs that the Taliban uses to buy weapons.”But even Colonel Magnani doesn’t exclude other uses besides fighting drugs, even
military uses if necessary: “The AMX are great for day and night reconnaissance.
But they can also carry out antiterrorist patrol missions to help prevent Taliban
attacks. They’ll use weapons only when strictly necessary. It’ll depend on the
situation in the theater of operations when the aircraft are deployed. Let’s hope
it’s better than what they’ve got there now!”
General Staff Defense Chief: “Defensive actions not ruled out.” The head of the Public Information section for Defense General Staff, Colonel
Massimo Fogari, doesn’t rule out the possibility that the AMX will be used in
combat missions, but only defensive—not for attack.“It’s premature to talk about how our aircraft will be used. We still haven’t
gotten the go ahead from NATO for our deployment offer. And it’ll be up to NATO,
at that time, to define the terms of the mission for our airplanes according to
what’s needed. They will certainly be used for reconnaissance missions to take
pictures of opium plantations, but they might also be used as air support for
ISAF ground troops. They might also intervene in dangerous situations, in case
of attack, as a rapid response force. So I can’t rule out that our AMX might be
used for combat missions, but only for defensive purposes in accordance with ISAF-NATO
mission, which is very different from the openly offense orientated American mission
“Enduring Freedom.” The two have nothing to do with each other. So it’s not right
to say that our aircraft are going to Afghanistan to fight a war. If anything,
they might intervene in cases of attack on defense forces.”
Andrea Nativi: “Bombing only for defensive purposes.” Along these same lines, Andrea Nativi, military expert and director of the Italian
Defense Journal (Rivista Italiana di Difesa), doesn’t exclude the possibility
of combat missions for Italian airplanes, but only for defense, not to attack.“You would never send soldiers into battle without arms, or without ammunition
for their guns. It’s the same thing here. You can’t deploy fighter-bombers into
a situation like that without bombs and missiles. But these armaments will be
used only for defense, not attack. For example, if the Taliban attacked one of
the PRTs (Provincial Reconstruction Team compounds set up by ISAF), our AMX could
be called to respond. But only—I repeat—to defend military installations belonging
to the ISAF contingent in the territory. Not for bombing Taliban positions, which
is what the Americans are doing as part of operation “Enduring Freedom,” and that
has been openly declared as a mission of war. This is distinct from the ISAF mission
under NATO, the one we’re part of, whose objective is “stabilization and reconstruction.”
That doesn’t mean that they’ll never be shooting. They could have sent the Red
Cross in that case, not the military. But it’s clear that ISAF’s mission is not
to hunt down the Taliban: this goes against the NATO mandate. There is a war mission
in Afghanistan but we’re not part of it. We’re not there to wage war, but of course
we can fight when necessary. That’s what the airplanes are for.”
NATO SHAPE Commando: “In extreme cases they would support Enduring Freedom.” Canadian Lieutenant Colonel Réjean Duchesneau, head of Supreme Headquarters
Allied Powers Europe’s (SHAPE) press office for NATO in Brussels, tells us that
deployment of the six Italian AMX aircraft in Afghanistan is still being considered
by NATO. He also explained that if and when accepted, the Italian planes will
have the same assignment as the aircraft they replace, which does not leave out
combat missions, including support for the US military operation “Enduring Freedom.”“Planes operating in Afghanistan as part of ISAF-NATO are always fully equipped
with weaponry and can be used in three types of missions: Reconnaissance (REC);
Close Air Support (CAS), which is air cover for troop movements on the ground
in potentially dangerous areas; and Quick Reaction Force (QRF), which is rapid
response intervention in case of attacks against ISAF troops and bases or PRTs.
But in cases of extreme necessity, planes under ISAF command can also aid Coalition
troops fighting the Taliban as part of the military operation “Enduring Freedom”—for
instance, when American troops are in serious difficulty they can request air
support from ISAF aircraft. Which is entirely understandable. We’re fighting on
the same side after all, aren’t we? We can’t just let Americans die because they’re
part of a different mission!”.
Norwegians tell it like it is… and how one Dutch F-16 was used. Four months ago, the Norwegian Defense Minister issued a statement announcing
deployment of F-16s as part of the ISAF mission that confirms Lieutenant Colonel
Duchesneau’s remarks. “Their assignment will be to guarantee combat aircraft availability
for ISAF capable of making their presence known (for deterrence, editor’s note)
and to provide air support for ground troops in critical situations. Furthermore,
in emergency situations, aircraft under ISAF command may also provide assistance
to ground forces in the US operation ‘Enduring Freedom.’”Thank God for Scandinavian honesty.
But in the final analysis, what happened a month ago in the Afghan city of Maymana,
in the northern province of Fryab, demonstrates more clearly than words just exactly
what our bombers will be doing if and when they ever get sent. On 7 February at
the height of protests over the Mohammed cartoons, several hundred demonstrators
were throwing stones at the local Norwegian ISAF base, which sent a request to
Dutch ISAF command for F-16s to frighten and disperse the demonstrators. Two fighter-bombers
were on the scene in a matter of minutes. They flew low over the crowd and fired
several “warning shots.”
Enrico Piovesana
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