Silvio Berlusconi? «His frequent blunders and poor choice of words has offended practically every category of Italian citizens and many European leaders… He has damaged the image of the country in Europe and brought ridicule to Italy's reputation in many sectors of the American government”. This is not a spur of the moment judgment but one pondered down to the last adjective and destined to remain secret. It was written by Ronald Spogli, the US ambassador to Rome, when he left office to explain our country to Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. It is a harsh portrait of the premier who "has become the symbol of the incapacity and ineffectiveness of Italian governments to meet the country’s chronic problems: a noncompetitive economic system, decaying infrastructure, growing debt, endemic corruption".

Despite this, the "Cavaliere" when "led by the hand" and "made to feel important" has shown himself to be the best ally possible. It is above all his domestic and international weakness that has been exploited by the Obama administration in order to obtain undreamed of concessions: more soldiers in Afghanistan, new military bases in Veneto and Sicily, total support in the standoff with Iran, support to American initiatives "also within EU institutions". Everything and more. To achieve its objectives, the White House offers "cover at the highest level" in times of political difficulty. Obama himself saved Silvio when - as written in increasingly worried reports- the G8 in Aquila risked becoming a disaster for him. Because the Americans have one certainty: there is no alternative to Berlusconi, there are no figures capable of replacing him. All in all, this is fine because "when we hook him into our objectives, he allows us to achieve concrete results". There is only one sore point, that is becoming increasingly more painful: his close, personal ties with the Kremlin. It is a relationship that increases the power of Moscow's main weapon - Gazprom's gas.

In January 2010, this drove Clinton to initiate an investigation into the secret relations between the two premiers: "Silvio seconds Putin's worst instincts". This is the analysis that emerges from the documents of the American Embassy in Rome obtained by WikiLeaks that “L’espresso” will begin publishing this week: more than 4000 cables that rewrite the story of the relations between Italy and the United States from 2002 until April 2010, analyzing every juncture in the life of our country thanks to direct talks with ministers, parliamentarians, managers, journalists and frequent inspections in the field. These are exceptional documents that testify to the collapse of Italy's credibility and its institutions, with very few exceptions: President Giorgio Napolitano, the Carabinieri, the Fiamme gialle and the soldiers involved in missions.

The clown premier and his blunders
"Berlusconi tends to make blunders and is a bit of a clown", a definition given by an anonymous Pdl official, recurs often in the reports sent to Washington that is kept up-to-date on all the premier’s verbal slipups, including "Obama's tan" and some of his "racy" jokes. But the dossiers have never concerned themselves with gossip: the sexual scandals, the "uninhibited parties with really young girls", the "recordings with a prostitute", the accusations of "sexual promiscuity made by his wife" take up very few lines that are dealt with in an extremely prudent manner. What the Americans care about instead is to what extent the Cavaliere can be useful for their plans. The best analysis is the one given by Spogli, George W. Bush's ambassador to Rome, who in February 2009 presented a dramatic picture to the new Obama administration: "Italy has not always shown itself to be an ideal partner. Its slow but real economic decline threatens its capacity to play a role in the international arena. Its leadership often lacks strategic vision - a characteristic that arises from decades of unstable or short-lived coalitions. The institutions are not adequately developed as one would expect from a modern European country". Spogli reiterates its leaders’ limits: "the lack of will or the incapacity to find answers to many of the chronic problems creates apprehension among its international partners and gives the impression of an ineffective and irresponsible government".

Silvio Berlusconi has become the symbol of this little Italy, with a portrait that seems to be taken from the film “Caimano”: "His perceived desire to place his personal interests ahead of those of the State, his preference for short-term solutions instead of long-term investments and his frequent use of public institutions and resources to gain electoral advantages over his political adversaries have damaged Italy's image in Europe and unfortunately brought ridicule to Italy's reputation in many sectors of the American government".

In the face of this diagnosis, however, the conclusions are Machiavellian: the situation presents clear advantages for the US. "The combination of economic decline and political idiosyncrasy has driven many European leaders to denigrate Berlusconi and Italy's contribution. We must not do this. We have to recognize that a long-term commitment with Italy and its leaders will pay strategic dividends now and in the future". There is a list of these dividends, starting with a fundamental question for Washington and ignored here at home: Africom, the new command that from Vicenza will direct military operations in Africa, the promised land of Al Qaeda's rebirth. Because the White House has essentially the same vision as Mussolini: Italy is a natural aircraft carrier in the Mediterranean. "It is a unique strategic platform for US troops, permitting them to easily reach the trouble spots in the Middle East, Eastern Europe and Africa. Thanks to this position, it has become the base of the most important military force deployed outside the States. And with Africom, it will be an even more important partner in our force projection". In addition, the government "has demonstrated the desire, rather the craving to collaborate with us". In other words, weak, discredited but very useful: "Berlusconi wants to be our friend: he is genuinely and deeply committed to relations with us. He is not in tune with our rhythm and he is hardly credible, but his return to the government has given us the way to concretize important operational results". And he recommends the following: "as long as you maintain close ties, you will achieve great results in Italy". In short, as was acknowledged already in 2003, "Rome is an excellent place to carry out our political and military business".

The G8 in Aquila risked failure
Ambassador Spogli is the same person who only seven months earlier, in May 2008, spoke of the Cavaliere's "impressive start" following his return to power after the fall of Prodi: the premier removed the trash from the streets of Naples (even though "there was no definitive solution to the problem"), passed economic measures and anti-crime laws. He was presented to Washington as "statesman capable of solving some of the most serious problems". But this image of success faded fast: the lack of countermeasures to the financial tsunami, the reforms that did not arrive, the infighting in the majority, the judicial investigations and, from the birthday of Noemi Letizia onward, the sexual scandals brought an end to the honeymoon. In July 2009, Silvio was down for the count and his destiny depended on the G8 in Aquila. Obama received a detailed report from Rome. They were convinced that it would be hard to achieve a diplomatic success, rather they feared the worst: the cables shortly prior to the event revealed the apprehension of the international governments, "starting from Sarkozy and Brown many are critical towards this G8".

The White House saves Private Silvio
The main problem was precisely him. "In Italy, all eyes are on the premier and how he will manage the summit, that commences while the Italian and foreign press is full of "lurid allegations" about his private life. Members of his party fear that other accusations will come out during the G8 or immediately before". Berlusconi sees the summit as an opportunity for raising his public image… He hopes to use it to show that he is a leader respected by the Great Powers and demonstrate his role as an international statesman in a theatrical way in his own country". Why help him? The key is in one sentence: "the Italian leaders are anxious to support the American government's priorities, they want to be in tune with our policy in every way". The long report signed by Elizabeth Dibble - then head of the embassy, today Clinton's political advisor - ends with a recommendation for the president: "your visit has special significance for the Italian government and public". In other words, the White House can save Berlusconi or condemn him, all it takes is a quip: the government's future is in the hands of the American president. We know how it turned out. The photo symbol of the G8 is the one that shows Obama in shirt sleeves as he walked arm in arm with Silvio, manifesting confidence amid the ruins of Aquila. It was a triumph for the Cavaliere's image, immediately recorded by the cables that informed Washington of his rapid resurrection: "after months of sexual and financial scandals, he has emerged from the summit stronger”. Paratroopers on the attack in the name of Obama

The White House immediately cashed in, receiving Rome's reply to the appeal for bolstering the Afghanistan mission, which had become the priority for the Obama administration. Ignazio La Russa, highly appreciated by the Americans and Franco Frattini, the most esteemed minister, outdid each other in granting the requests. The WikiLeaks cables show that the Pentagon hoped to obtain limited reinforcements, about 500 troops, while Italy surprised them: it sent a permanent contingent of an additional 1,200 troops to the Herat region, bringing the total to 4,200 with more armored vehicles, aircraft, combat and transport helicopters. Rome promised to eliminate the old habit of "paying money to avoid attacks". And it abolished all proscriptions, the constraints that prevented our units from fighting alongside Marines in the hotspots in the Kandahar area. Thanks to "La Russa’s political cover", the Folgore’s attitude changed, going on the offensive against the Taliban. The president of the Senate Renato Schifani explained that "Berlusconi is with Obama viscerally". The plan was presented in Parliament in December 2009 but the embassy feared that it would get bogged down: "A list of growing political problems could cause the commitment in Afghanistan to lead to a backlash against Berlusconi. We urgently request that Washington offer high-level contacts to Berlusconi, Frattini and La Russa to ensure that these reinforcements are deployed". The embassy begins "aggressive" lobbying, meeting political exponents of all the parties. And concludes: "in the coming months, Berlusconi will need the highest level of cover from the American government The regime in Syria? Veronica told me ...

The Americans in Italy proceeded to pursue a series of objectives that were stated on the eve of the 2008 elections. The gloomy days of the Prodi government, the ally restrained by the communist component, were over: "If Veltroni wins, the situation will be excellent, if Berlusconi returns it will be very excellent". The list had 18 points and appeared "ambitious" to Ambassador Spogli: but in less than three years most of them have been achieved. In the meetings, the ministers seemed to completely forget about Italy's strategic vision and interests, granting without asking for anything in return, at most pushing their own personal acknowledgment with a visit to Washington. The drawnout negotiations at the Farnesina with D’Alema, who dickered over every detail in every request, were gone. Certainly, the premier sometimes "tells some whoppers" and the embassy was terrorized by his attempts to present himself as a world mediator also for the US: "We must dissuade him without rubbing him the wrong way". Spogli was taken by surprise when without warning, Silvio announced on the “Porta a Porta” TV show our withdrawal from Iraqi: in the middle of the night, he woke the generals in Baghdad and sent the Pentagon the transcription of the talk with Bruno Vespa and Mario Orfeo. The Cavaliere often appears naïf. During the Israeli raids on Gaza, he once again put forward the old idea of building hotels and tourist resorts in Gaza: "I could find some investors". In the summit with General Petraeus, who was leading the war against terrorism, he talked about his wife at the time Veronica's trip to Damascus: "she met Assad's wife, we must involve her…". Or when in a conversation with the Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, who headed the CIA during the 1980s, he talked about a trip taken to China by his daughter "newly graduated, disconcerted by the growth of the Chinese economy." Side notes, trifles. Because since 2009 onwards, thanks to the Cavaliere, everything has gone smoothly for the US: from Iran to negotiations on global warming, they have wrung a long series of concessions.

Rome closes an eye on the US bases
We do not realize it, but since 2008 we have become the most important American stronghold in the world. There are 15,000 American military personnel in Italy: the same number as during the Cold War but with units that are much more battle-trained and incisive. Berlusconi kept his promise to eliminate all obstacles to the new base Vicenza, that allows the 173rd Airborne Brigade to deploy to three continents in a few hours. In Sigonella, the nest is being built for the Global Hawks, the remote-controlled reconnaissance planes that can carry out spy missions anywhere. In Gricignano d’Aversa, a $500 million garrison is ready to house the personnel of the Sixth Fleet, decisive for patrolling the routes of terrorists and pirates: the United States would like for the installation to be declared extraterritorial, but the Italian Constitution does not allow it. La Russa -as revealed by the WikiLeaks cables - has at any rate offered a bilateral agreement that makes the facility de facto autonomous from Italian authorities. There is more difficulty for the MUOS mega-antenna in Niscemi, part of the global communications system that will connect the US military units spread throughout the world. The Washington emissaries "have guaranteed that it will not cause health problems", but Gianni Letta and La Russa have come up against resistance from the Sicilians. The most important result is another one: in silence, once again in Vicenza, an old barracks has been transformed into Africom, the new command that will guide American operations in Africa. The matter was overseen by Letta, to whom the Washington envoys clearly stated that it will be used for "direct action" on the African continent.

He seconds Putin's worst instincts
The only significant defeat has been the Russia campaign. The axis comprised by the interests of Berlusconi and Eni have been resistant to every pressure and even the increasingly less veiled threats. It is a strategic question: energy is Putin’s most powerful weapon, with which he can hold Europe hostage. And Eni is a strong ally of Moscow: it bartered access from Gazprom to Siberian gas fields with concessions in Libya and Algeria. Furthermore, the South Stream gas pipeline project, across the Black Sea and Turkey, completes the encirclement of the European continent. Washington is moving on two fronts. It has stimulated the return to nuclear power in Italy, in order to reduce reliance on Putin's gas. It is intervening in every way possible on the government, which owns 30% of Eni, and with Scaroni to convince them to break off the entente with Moscow: it is trying to make them understand that they risk becoming a hostage of the Russians. The passion between the two premiers bewilders them: "Silvio has a growing preference for assertive leaders". To break them up, they are cajoling Berlusconi: "We must make him feel that he has a personal relationship with us and we must second his conviction that he is an expert statesman". To no avail. In January 2010, Clinton seems to have had enough and launched an investigation to understand what was behind the Italian-Russian axis. She asked for all possible information on the "relations and personal investments, if they exist, that link Putin and Berlusconi and that might influence the energy policy of the two countries". She wanted to know about the "relations between Scaroni, Eni’s top management and members of the Italian government, especially the premier and Frattini". She demanded all information "on the instances in which the Italian government has favored business interests over worries about energy policy". This was the indication that the impatience had exceeded the limits and had become open suspicion. The WikiLeaks database limits itself to the first brief reply, that provided by an Italian diplomat in Moscow who explained how "everything takes place directly between Putin and Berlusconi".

He will survive even without arbitration
Until the spring of 2010 - date of the last cables - the exasperation was still secondary. Because in Washington they know there is no alternative to Berlusconi. They are not troubled by the judicial problems, and their opinion of the Italian judiciary is succinct, "an inefficient and self-referential caste", without control that imposes its power, conditioning political life. Even when the Judicial Council strikes down the Alfano arbitration law, they do not appear to be worried about the future of Palazzo Chigi. What they fear instead are the long-term effects of the clash with the Quirinale: "The tirade against Napolitano, a highly respected figure, could be taken very poorly by many Italians and lead to wider division between the two institutions ". For the time being, however, the Cavaliere "has a solid majority and is still popular, the Pd is disorganized, the dissidents in his coalition are not strong enough to move against him. Despite being weakened, his government does not appear to be threatened by the ruling. But, as Berlusconi himself remarked, in order to defend himself in the trials he will have to take time away from working for the Italian people".

All this, however, does not prevent him from granting his allies’ wishes. Such as maintaining a powerful contingent in Lebanon - "an operation of the leftist government disliked by the center-right" and today deemed without significance by our generals: Washington instead judges it to be decisive for Israel's security and Clinton orchestrated a worldwide campaign to convince Rome not to withdraw. By now, as acknowledged by the US Embassy, like in Cavour’s time, it is our troops that carry out our foreign policy. And in 2011, between Lebanon and Afghanistan, Italy will spend more than €1 billion. In the "offensive" against the Taliban decided by the premier, 25 of our troops have already died: however, he was not at their funerals, because - as revealed by the wiretapping in Milan - he was too tired after the bunga bunga at Arcore.