Italy in the Post-Cold War Order: Adaptation, Bipartisanship, Visibility
There are little doubts that Italy has attempted to play a more assertive role in the international arena since the end of the Cold War. During the first forty years of its Republican history, conditioned by both the polarized international context and an antagonistic domestic political system, Italy delegated its main choices in international affairs to external actors, most notably NATO and the European Union. The transition from a bipolar to a unipolar/multipolar world order provided Italy with new opportunities to pursue its political and commercial interests more autonomously, as well as new responsibilities, to actively contribute to solving conflicts and addressing new global threats. At the same time, the collapse of the traditional parties (linked to the fall of the Berlin wall and the Clean Hands enquiries) and the changes of the electoral law (from a proportional representation into a quasi-majoritarian system) generated two heterogeneous coalitions which have regularly alternated in power, but do not always share the same views and approaches-with differences at times of form, and more often of substance.

Against this background, Italy in the Post-Cold War Order: Adaptation, Bipartisanship, Visibility, edited by Maurizio Carbone, seeks to explain the evolution of Italy's international action over a twenty-year span (1989–2009). Three central questions are addressed. First, how does Italy adapt to transformations of the international system? Second, how does its ever-changing political system influence Italy's choices in foreign relations? Third, how do domestic structures constrain (or enable) Italy's place on the world stage? To answer these questions, this book consists of two broad parts. The first part sets the context and discusses issues 'horizontally,' focusing on foreign policy, security and defense policy, development cooperation, and multilateral action. The second part, which takes a 'vertical' approach, discusses Italy's relations with key countries and regions of the world

1147535616
Italy in the Post-Cold War Order: Adaptation, Bipartisanship, Visibility
There are little doubts that Italy has attempted to play a more assertive role in the international arena since the end of the Cold War. During the first forty years of its Republican history, conditioned by both the polarized international context and an antagonistic domestic political system, Italy delegated its main choices in international affairs to external actors, most notably NATO and the European Union. The transition from a bipolar to a unipolar/multipolar world order provided Italy with new opportunities to pursue its political and commercial interests more autonomously, as well as new responsibilities, to actively contribute to solving conflicts and addressing new global threats. At the same time, the collapse of the traditional parties (linked to the fall of the Berlin wall and the Clean Hands enquiries) and the changes of the electoral law (from a proportional representation into a quasi-majoritarian system) generated two heterogeneous coalitions which have regularly alternated in power, but do not always share the same views and approaches-with differences at times of form, and more often of substance.

Against this background, Italy in the Post-Cold War Order: Adaptation, Bipartisanship, Visibility, edited by Maurizio Carbone, seeks to explain the evolution of Italy's international action over a twenty-year span (1989–2009). Three central questions are addressed. First, how does Italy adapt to transformations of the international system? Second, how does its ever-changing political system influence Italy's choices in foreign relations? Third, how do domestic structures constrain (or enable) Italy's place on the world stage? To answer these questions, this book consists of two broad parts. The first part sets the context and discusses issues 'horizontally,' focusing on foreign policy, security and defense policy, development cooperation, and multilateral action. The second part, which takes a 'vertical' approach, discusses Italy's relations with key countries and regions of the world

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Overview

There are little doubts that Italy has attempted to play a more assertive role in the international arena since the end of the Cold War. During the first forty years of its Republican history, conditioned by both the polarized international context and an antagonistic domestic political system, Italy delegated its main choices in international affairs to external actors, most notably NATO and the European Union. The transition from a bipolar to a unipolar/multipolar world order provided Italy with new opportunities to pursue its political and commercial interests more autonomously, as well as new responsibilities, to actively contribute to solving conflicts and addressing new global threats. At the same time, the collapse of the traditional parties (linked to the fall of the Berlin wall and the Clean Hands enquiries) and the changes of the electoral law (from a proportional representation into a quasi-majoritarian system) generated two heterogeneous coalitions which have regularly alternated in power, but do not always share the same views and approaches-with differences at times of form, and more often of substance.

Against this background, Italy in the Post-Cold War Order: Adaptation, Bipartisanship, Visibility, edited by Maurizio Carbone, seeks to explain the evolution of Italy's international action over a twenty-year span (1989–2009). Three central questions are addressed. First, how does Italy adapt to transformations of the international system? Second, how does its ever-changing political system influence Italy's choices in foreign relations? Third, how do domestic structures constrain (or enable) Italy's place on the world stage? To answer these questions, this book consists of two broad parts. The first part sets the context and discusses issues 'horizontally,' focusing on foreign policy, security and defense policy, development cooperation, and multilateral action. The second part, which takes a 'vertical' approach, discusses Italy's relations with key countries and regions of the world


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780739137116
Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date: 02/24/2011
Pages: 294
Product dimensions: 6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Stelios Stavridis Lecturer in International Relations,The University of Reading and Jean Monnet Lecturer in the International Dimension of European Integration, The University of Reading Christopher Hill Montague Burton Professor of International Relations,London School of Economics and Political Science

Luca Ratti is Associate Professor of European and Comparative Labour Law at the University of Luxembourg.

Table of Contents

List of Abbreviations vii

Acknowledgements ix

Foreword Christopher Hill xi

Introduction: Understanding Italy's Role on the World Stage Maurizio Carbone 1

Part I Contexts and Perspectives

1 Italian Foreign Policy in the Cold War: A Constant Search for Status Leopoldo Nuti 25

2 Italian Politics after the End of the Cold War: The Continuation of a Two-Level Game James L. Newell 47

3 Italy as a Foreign Policy Actor: The Interplay of Domestic and International Factors James Walston 65

4 Italy as a Security Actor: New Resolve and Old Inadequacies Osvaldo Croci Paolo Foradori Paolo Rosa 81

5 Italy as a Development Actor: A Tale of Bipartisan Failure Maurizio Carbone 103

6 Italy as a Multilateral Actor: The Inescapable Destiny of a Middle Power Luca Ratti 123

Part II Countries and Regions

7 Italy and the US: Prestige, Peace, and the Transatlantic Balance Jason W. Davidson 143

8 Italy and the EU: Seeking Visibility, Fearing Exclusion Maurizio Carbone Lucia Quaglia 161

9 Italy, Russia, and China: Costs and Benefits of Building Bridges Maurizio Carbone Valter Coralluzzo 179

10 Italy in the Mediterranean: Between Atlanticism and Europeanism Maurizio Carbone Valter Coralluzzo Raffaella A. Del Sarto Nathalie Tocci 197

11 Italy in the Balkans: An Emerging Actor in its Neighborhood Roberto Belloni 215

12 Italy in Latin America and South Asia: Struggling to Become More Visible Ernesto Gallo 239

Conclusion: After the Cold War, A World of Opportunity and Greater Responsibility for Italy Too Vittorio Emanuele Parsi 255

Index 271

About the Contributors 275

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