COMMUNIST GAINS IN ITALY UPSET U.S.

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80R01731R002200090015-7
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 30, 2012
• Sequence Number: 15
• Content Type: NOTES

STAT
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/05/30: CIA-RDP80R01731 R002200090015-7
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Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/05/30: CIA-RDP80R01731 R002200090015-7
 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/05/30: CIA-RDP80R01731 R002200090015-7
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CQfIfv1UNIST GAINS
III ITALY UPSET U. S.
t:d..
Ki~~inger Advises Dominant
P Ay to 'Revitalize' and Bar
'Reds From Government
Special to The NOW Tark time,
rASHINGT'ON,'Nov. 8Se: ,
cretary of State "Henry A.. Kis
suer and other top Admini.
tration officials are. expie$sing
gr wing concern over the Cg;,i
-
asst political gains - is sly:
ari4 have been sending repeated +1
signals to the dominant Chris-
'
tiar
,Democratic Party to revita-
liz~ptself and keep the Commu-
nists from joining the-national
Government.., , -,. -,
t ie ~$'S hss-troubled tea
ington,'dui,'',, ttibra?. than a War,
andvtltq tii: ty has, groti.a'-iiq
recept months bacadse of the
Cott'imttjiists, :strength in. fast
Ju1q's' local' elections and -vigns
of :furtlic.s ai;~s? in :the fn rf
pparttainentdt~_ ~ 's:leciioris?
1977,'~ _.u
M. I{issingers constant Pd=
vice..to Italian visitors has bees
described- by one official ha
"revitalize ' revitalize" and do
evefyt.hing possible to prevent
they-Communists front entering
a governing. coalitoa. Such ?a
Cotllntunist role; even 'though
the'.ttaliai't Comnliinisls are? re-
garded as aaodera's, ;would. be
viewed by',Washingon
disaster for the North aatlantic
Treaty Organization,: the
cialr said.
Given the volatile state of
Italian politics and, the lack
of public interest in-'this coun.
try about Italy's situation, the
Adr nistration has generally
refrained from commenting
publicly on Italian develop- ..
mend.
ti'' Warning to Cotnmittea
8qt Mr. Kissinger made an
untts'uaIly pointed public state-
ment about the Administra-
tion concern in testifyingi_be-
fore''-~..a House committee on
Thursday.
Asked by a member- of the -
House International Relations
Committee whether Italy
"could be lost to NATO" as [th4 result of Communist politi-.,
cal gains, Mr. Kissinger replied:
"We .are distrubed. ? by the
dramatic gains- by 'the Commu-
nist ;Party in June. Basically
the United States. cannot deter-
mine, the domestic. structure
of- Italy by its own initiative;
basically the future of Italy
is nop an American foreign poli-
??
is not an uIe ",.....--
cy problem.
"But having said that, thh'
Lnit~d States hopes very
the Christian Democratic P g
which has been the g
party, revitalizes itself so that
it call gain tile. necessary p
support and x ' coalition can
be put together by the demo-i
cratio parties to prevent the I
entry into the government of
the Communist Party of Italy.
..Spice the impact..on? NATO
of- having one of the 1 Commu-
nist ma]or
countries wiartlcn $tion w ould
Party P, P giving
be very serious,. we're g
Italy as much advice and we
much encouragadvic
can" woke,
When Mr. Kissin Volpe was
Ambassador John. A.
in Washington :for consult3-
tions~.with President Ford and
the State Department on the
political situation-in Italy, and
Mr. Kissinger had,justthe need
on Tuesday stressing
for revitalization *to Giulio An-
dreotti, the Italian Budget Mi-I
nistel, who was lehere with a
parliamentary younger Leaders Advised
TILe Administration believes
that ?` the Christian Democrats,
who -eplaced Arnintore Fa July
as their party leader
after the Communists cariie
within three - eftagPoints
of the Christian Democrats
must bring
the 1Qcal elections,
younger people into prom-
inenCe and achieve a more dyn'
amic image. Otherwise, the runs
ministration believes, Commu-
the rysk of having the =
nists make such a strong show-
i1 coming into the
make; their entry
Govet`nment inevitable.
Thd American concern was
remir1scent of the years imme-?
diately after- World--War 11,
when', the Truman Administra-
tion feared that the. Commu-
nists'would wine th that the
in 1948. To ppoured millions
united States poll
of dollars into Italy, . much of
it through clandestine channels,
bris
o he Ole h
wc ucialttparliamenrtary'
win
vote.
Several nongovernmental ex
perts : believe that, the Italian
Communist Party should be
brought into- a:. coalition as it
is ing and. run ~ On democratic
Peking
princjples at home, where it
controls several local admini
trations ButeMr., Kissinger and
his aides believe that such It
development would be a disast-
er forthe West.
They have asserted that a
com"unist-influenced govern
ment?would inevitably weaken
Italy's ties to NATO further
south-
damaging the alliance's
em flank, already in
because of the unpredictable
situation in Portugal, Spain,
Greece and Turkey.
hoes v much
S0,~s ply.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/05/30: CIA-RDP80R01731 R002200090015-7
 STAT
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/05/30: CIA-RDP80R01731 R002200090015-7
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/05/30: CIA-RDP80R01731 R002200090015-7