NATO DECLARES WAR ON SERBIA
"Italy expects that every man shall do his duty"
Last night (i.e. yesterday, Ed.) NATO Secretary General Javier Solana ordered NATO troops in Europe to attack Serbia. It is now up to the Commander-in-Chief Wesley Clark to decide when air strikes - which the Pentagon has said will be "very heavy" - are to begin.
Yesterday afternoon Italian Premier Massimo D'Alema stressed Italy's commitment to NATO, her determination to maintain promises made to her allies and to take part in punitive action.
The Government risks losing the support of its parliamentary coalition . The Italian Communists are opposed to any sort of military intervention. The opposition coalition announced that it would support the Government while Italy was fighting alongside her allies, but that they would expect to see resignations afterwards.
The Refounded Communists and the Northern League said they were against air strikes. Some League Members of Parliament will set out for Belgrade tomorrow as a sign of solidarity towards "our friends the Serb people."
There are worries about the possibility of Serb reprisals against Italy, which is just a couple of miles across the Adriatic sea.
These worries were defined as "pure fantasy" by the Prime Minister.
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