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米IHT/NYT：ベルルスコーニはイスラエルのEU同盟の鍵でシャロン訪問
http://www.iht.com/articles/118177.html
News Analysis: In Berlusconi, Israel finds a key EU ally
Frank Bruni/NYT NYT
Wednesday, November 19, 2003
Sharon visit highlights Italy's support
ROME Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's decision to travel here this week was no surprise. Italy currently holds the rotating presidency of the European Union and Israeli officials are as concerned as ever about currents of anti-Semitism among some Europeans and opposition to Israeli policies among a great many.
.But Sharon's visit, which began midday Monday and is scheduled to end late Wednesday, actually reflects much more than Italy's six-month turn at the EU's helm.
.It recognizes the degree to which Italy, in a relatively short time, has become one of Israel's most dependable allies and an important, increasingly trod bridge for Israel to the rest of Western Europe.
.Since Italy's iconoclastic prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, took office nearly two and a half years ago, this country's support for Israel has been almost steadfast, in stark contrast to Italy's often pro-Arab leanings in the past.
.Perhaps the most significant expression and outcome of that support was the EU's decision in September to declare all wings of the militant Palestinian group Hamas a terrorist organization.
.Israel had long been pushing for that, and many Israeli officials said that it finally happened in large part because Italy took over the Union presidency on July 1.
."The Italian role was, I'd say, material and crucial," said Ofer Bavly, an Israeli diplomat here.
.Berlusconi's affinity for Israel extends to frequent statements that it should be admitted someday to the EU, a position that most other West European leaders either do not hold or do not express.
.Indeed, he has trumpeted his sympathies for Israel so loudly that, two months ago, the New York-based Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish advocacy organization, gave him its Distinguished Statesman Award.
.Around the same time, a front-page cartoon in La Stampa, a centrist Italian daily, depicted the prime minister as a trained seal with a Star of David on its nose.
.That caricature suggested a discomfort in many Italians about Berlusconi's embrace of Israel, although the center-left opposition in Italy has not really made an issue out of the prime minister's position.
.Berlusconi's ardent support for Israel can be explained, in large part, by his ardent support for the United States and his belief that he is reflecting and respecting American policy in the Middle East.
."There's a connection," said Giuliano Ferrara, a close friend and political ally of Berlusconi's. "He's with Sharon because he's with Bush and because he wants to feel engaged in a strong response to Sept. 11."
.But there are other explanations as well, including certain facets of Berlusconi's personality and current quirks of Italian and European politics.
.For example, Gianfranco Fini, the Italian deputy prime minister, seems intent on showcasing his friendship with Israel as the ultimate, irrevocable proof that his political party, the National Alliance, has made a clean break with its Fascist roots.
.The National Alliance is the second most important party, after Berlusconi's Forza Italia, in Italy's center-right governing coalition. Fini is scheduled to make an official state visit to Israel next week.
.Whatever the reasons for the Italian government's attachment to Israel, it has opened a window of opportunity that Israeli officials seem eager to use. Sharon's trip here is not a short one, nor is it merely one leg of a longer journey.
.Israeli officials said that one of his main goals was to enlist Italian leaders in a fight against anti-Semitism in Europe.
.Those officials contend that such a bias was behind the results of a recent poll of people in the European Union that found that 59 percent of respondents labeled Israel a threat to world peace.
.By contrast, 53 percent said "yes" when asked if North Korea or Iran was such a threat. Fifty-three percent also said yes when asked about the United States.
.But only 48 percent of Italians labeled Israel a threat. That was the lowest percentage in any of the 15 countries in the union.
.Israeli officials said that Mr. Sharon sees Italy as a counterweight against pro-Palestinian leanings in the union.
.In Berlusconi, they have found a somewhat odd ally.
.In July, he made a public joke about concentration camps that managed to offend both Germans and Jews. In a subsequent interview with British journalists, he defended Benito Mussolini as a relatively benign dictator.
.Mussolini's Fascist regime enacted racial laws against Jews and helped the Nazis deport thousands of Italian Jews to concentration camps.
."The approach of Berlusconi has not always been coherent," said Saul Meghnagi, who is on the board of the Union of Italian Jewish Communities.
.Some Italian political analysts said Berlusconi's friendship with Israel reflected a desire to be different from his political predecessors: to leave a mark on Italy by pointing it in new directions.
.Some analysts said the prime minister was also trying to stand out among other West European leaders and claim a role of his own on the international stage.
."He likes marking his differences," said Gad Lerner, the Italian co-author of a book on religion and terrorism, "Martyrs and Assassins," that was published here in 2001.
.But Italian government officials said Berlusconi's affinity for Israel was an extension of a genuine opposition to the kind of terrorism that has taken a particularly heavy toll there.
."This is not a change for the sake of change," said Cesare Maria Ragaglini, a senior official in the Italian Foreign Ministry.
."As far as Italy is concerned," Ragaglini said, "Sept. 11 was a turning point."
.The New York Times
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