Il Interministerial Committee for the Security of the Republic today extended the mandate for the directors of theAise, John Caravelli and Aisi, Mario Parente. The 61-year-old General of the Army Giovanni Caravelli was supposed to leave his post on May 16, now he will remain in his place for another 4 years. Carabinieri general Mario Parente, aged 64, has been at the helm of the Aise for 6 years and has already benefited from several extensions. This time it is the last extension.
According to the law, the maximum period of stay at the direction of an intelligence agency cannot exceed 8 years. The Prime Minister Mario Draghi he therefore decided that the complicated international situation makes the change of the leaders of the Italian Intelligence unadvisable.
The decision to extend the two leading figures was supported by the military aggression of Russia in Ukraine and the involvement of Italy, committed to supporting the armed forces of Kiev with military weapons and equipment. Likewise, the risk of retaliation by Moscow against Italian interests played a significant role in guiding the choice of the Italian government.
The stability of our security forces also depends on the energy issue with the vital need for the country to diversify the sources of supply to free itself from dependence on Moscow
No less important is the domino effect of the conflict on other sensitive theaters for Italy, such as Libya, the Sahel, the enlarged Mediterranean and the subsequent repercussions on the economy, as well as the ongoing 'hybrid' threat in the field of disinformation and of the fifth dimension, the cyber world.
In the face of these delicate and sensitive "dossiers", continuity is a must, according to the assessments of our governmental bodies responsible for the security of the Italian Republic.
Caravelli's hearing at Copasir
The director of the Aise, Giovanni Caravelli was listened to for three and a half hours by Copasir. War in Ukraine in the foreground, of course, with a focus also on the 'hybrid' threat represented by Russia, which tries to influence the debate in Western countries, through propaganda, disinformation, fake news on media and social networks. The Committee, together with the Rai Supervisory Commission, is investigating in particular the issue of guests on TV, Russian journalists and experts who could be a direct expression of the Kremlin. Copasir will listen to the CEO of Rai, Carlo Fuortes, and the president of Agcom, Giacomo Lasorella next week on the case. Caravelli's hearing today therefore also served to acquire useful material on the influence strategy implemented by Moscow. Italian intelligence has long had its antennas raised on Russian espionage attempts, as shown by the arrest last year of Walter Biot, the frigate captain employed by the Defense General Staff, as well as the expulsion of 30 diplomats from the Russian embassy a month ago. The attention among the apparatuses is also high on the propaganda and information manipulation aspects, even if they are hosted on TV are not a matter of relevance to the services.