Minister Mogherini, people are saying that the change of government in Delhi could have positive repercussions on the case of the Italian marines. Is there any diplomatic evidence to support these expectations?<\/STRONG><\/P> \u201cThe new Indian government corresponds with a new Italian government, and a new dynamic. We picked up the work done by Minister Bonino and have re-asserted the principles of Italian jurisdiction and functional immunity for Latorre and Girone. At the same time, we\u2019re following the pathway of internationalising the case. I was speaking just half an hour ago with the newly installed Indian foreign minister, who is a woman. A new channel has opened up\u201d. <\/P> Can we hope for a relatively short timescale?<\/STRONG><\/P> \u201cThere\ufffd\ufffds no button we can press to resolve this case. We taken all the necessary steps and at the stage we\u2019re in now the Indian position is being assessed. So the internationalisation is proceeding\u201d. <\/P> <\/STRONG><\/P> What impression did you get from your talk with your Indian opposite number?<\/STRONG><\/P> \u201cAn impression of \u2018concreteness\u2019. The fact that for the first time the foreign minister in India is a woman opens up a more direct channel of communication: the contact\u2019s been established, and we may meet up. I\u2019d like to add that I understand Girone\u2019s comments, which I interpret as meaning: the head-to-head is leading nowhere. This is also the line that the new team of international legal experts is working on\u201d.<\/P> Isn\u2019t it harmful to the two marines, and the efforts to assert the right to try them in Italy, when people wave banners with the words \u201cRelease them!\u201d as though they were in terrorists\u2019 hands?<\/STRONG><\/P> \u201cPeople need to use the proper form of words. It\u2019s something we all need to be careful about because the words we say have a strong impact there. We all need to have a sense of responsibility and unity, as was the case recently in Parliament. And we need to maintain that position in the weeks to come, which will be crucial\u201d. <\/P> Let\u2019s move to another scenario. Barack Obama has announced 1 billion dollars for security in the East and has asked the Europeans to increase their defence spending. Is this a form of pressure on Italy to review its military spending cuts, including on the F35?<\/STRONG><\/P> \u201cI don\u2019t think so. We spoke about the defence spending reorganisation when Obama came to Italy, and again during my recent visit to Washington. This isn\u2019t an \u2018Italy question\u2019. NATO\u2019s goal of seeing defence spending at 2% of GDP has only been reached by a couple of countries. Our discussion with the United States is as follows: we\u2019re reviewing our military spending, the point isn\u2019t how much but how we spend our resources. And we famously spend a lot on personnel and not very much on equipment and its modernisation. Italy hasn\u2019t analysed its defence spending for decades, but now, with Minister Pinotti, we\u2019re working on a white paper. With a view to increasing the efficiency of that spending\u201d. <\/P> Was the question of the F35s not broached?<\/STRONG><\/P> \u201cDuring my visit to Washington the question wasn\u2019t raised even once\u201d. <\/P> Didn\u2019t Obama speak about it in Rome?<\/STRONG><\/P> \u201cI don\u2019t think so, not specifically. The general question of military spending was raised and, as is always the case when you\u2019re talking to the Americans, they said that they appreciated the quality of our participation in international missions, starting with the UNIFIL mission in Lebanon\u201d. <\/P>
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