These excerpts from the memoirs of a former member of Italy’s 36th Air Brigade, published by the Italian Air Force, provides fascinating perspective on the shock felt by officers when they received the dismantling instructions and then how they planned and carried out their tasks. The following sentences convey the emotional reactions: “The dismantling, for those who experienced it, was a real demolition. A frenetic destructive activity pervaded the military community which, almost with anger and a certain sadism, destroyed and reduced to useless remains everything on which it had studied, worked and operated.” As the excerpts makes clear, not everything was destroyed and junked. Consistent with the Joint Staff’s original proposals, sensitive components, such as the warheads were returned to the U.S., while other parts of the missiles were salvaged and made available to other organizations. Some equipment went to Italy’s “San Marco” space research program, just as Prime Minister Fanfani had proposed to President Kennedy during their meeting in January 1963.

To what extent the dismantling procedure in Turkey paralleled the one in Italy remains unclear, at least on the basis of available documentation.

On March 22, 1963, through an exchange of notes, the U.S. and Italy confirmed the final agreement on the dismantling of the Jupiter missiles and their replacement with patrols of Polaris submarines assigned to the Supreme Allied Commander Europe. The Polaris patrols would begin on April 1, 1963, and the dismantling operation would occur during the next 25 days.

In his diary, Fanfani recorded that the Council of Ministers has approved his report on the talks with President Kennedy and the recommendation to withdraw the Jupiters on April 1, 1963. The Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Defense would have a “mandate” to implement the withdrawal. As agreed, the Jupiters would be replaced by Polaris, and the latter would not be based in Italy. Italy would support a NATO multilateral force, without the tripartite directorate that De Gaulle had espoused.

In the morning, Fanfani met with his advisers, and they agreed to accept the Jupiter-Polaris arrangement. He then met with Kennedy for a series of conversations on East-West issues and the developing countries. During their private meeting, Fanfani conveyed to Kennedy the conditions for the agreement—Polaris submarines would not be based in Italy, and Italy would be a participant in the MLF and a member of the NATO committee establishing it. As he noted in his diary, Fanfani asked that language referring to “bases in the Mediterranean” (“which could lead one to suppose they are in Italy”) be removed from the “minute of understanding” of the meeting. Kennedy accepted the stipulations, and a memorandum of their understanding was prepared.

Fanfani covered the events of the day in this journal entry, noting that he told Kennedy he would make no commitment on the Jupiter-Polaris replacement until he spoke with McNamara. With McNamara, Fanfani emphasized the point about using the Jupiter base for space launches. Both Kennedy and McNamara denied that there was a trade with the USSR, with McNamara emphasizing the risks posed by the Jupiters during the Missile Crisis.

Memo by A. Albonetti to GA on US NPT project. The paper focuses on the potentially adverse impact for Italy of signing the treaty. It also raises the issue of a "European clause"; suggestions for possible Italian counter-proposals to the project and consideration of the nuclear moratorium proposed by Italy.

Memo by CSMD A. Rossi on the resumption of the work of the Committee of the 18 in Geneva and the issue of non-dissemination nuclear weapons: summary of technical-military observations from SMD to MD of March 1964 on US proposal for declaration on non-dissemination, analysis on nuclear power guidelines and Non-nuclear countries; draft British and Canadian agreements presented to the Atlantic Council and reactions to alliance countries, statement Foreign Minister A. Fanfani to Geneva; US project of nuclear non-dissemination treaty, MAE instructions to amb. Cavalletti

MAE DAP memo on prospective US-USSR INF and START negotiations, Soviet position and objectives, role of Europe in promoting an intermediate solution for INF. The paper addresses also the issue of the deployment in Western Europe of Pershing II and Cruise missiles, and discusses consultation in Atlantic Council with amb. E. Rowny on European role question in START talks.

Report and political analysis by amb. Ducci on the IAEA Conference. The paper discusses the draft resolution presented by Italy, US reaction , USSR attitude, as well as the position of other delegations.

Analysis by MAE litigation service on the scope and legal relevance of the reaction by depositary states and Australia to the Italian declaration of May 4 1975on the issue of nuclear weapons and other nuclear explosive devices.