Italy in Uncertain Times

Book excerpt: This book analyzes how variations in the traditional pillars of Italian foreign policy (the US, the EU and multilateralism) can be related to changes in the US-led international hegemonic order and to the role that Italy plays within that order. To explore these variations, the book proposes an analysis of the Italian voting and sponsoring behavior at the UN in the period 2000-2017, in both the General Assembly and the Security Council, and emphasizes the importance of the latter forum to detect how Italian behavior reflects changes at the international system level. By focusing on the Italian coalition behavior, the book explores how Italy as a status seeking middle power has traditionally played the role of coalition facilitator, adapting its foreign policy to be part of a coalition of European states and building on this coalition to increase its contribution to the maintenance of the international system in support of the US-led order. Ultimately this behavior also contributed to its status. However, at a moment when traditional coalitions are reshuffling, and elements of uncertainty are present, elements of volatility are present in Italian foreign policy, especially in the choice of intra-European coalition partners. Italy still builds on a coalition of European states and still does so in support of the US and its authority in the international hegemonic order. But changes in the bargaining environment are making the facilitation of a coalition of European states more difficult and less rewarding. The book also highlights ongoing challenges at both the domestic and international level that might lead to more marked discontinuities in the traditional Italian foreign policy behavior