The role of Italy during the Operation Iraqi Freedom 2003

The thesis is focused on the Italian military participation in the American military intervention into Iraq in the 2003. There are summarized in the theoretical part the main characteristics of realism as a theory of international relations and a possible explanation of the intervention from the neo-realist point of view. The practical part begins with a summary of international missions with Italian military participation and describes the experience which Italian army acquired in these missions. Other chapters are devoted to the opinion held by the Catholic Church and Italian government on the intervention and the role of the prime minister Silvio Berlusconi on the government decision of supporting the intervention. The thesis is also devoted to the consequences of Italian involvement in the Operation Iraqi Freedom on its military doctrine