A close relationship :ITALY AND MONTENEGRO AFTER 1878
A close relationship :ITALY AND MONTENEGRO AFTER 1878

Summary/Abstract: In the second half of 19th Century, being a minor power plays in favour of Italy: since mid-19th the ingdom of Sardinia offered assistance and volunteers to Greeks, Romanians and Serbs against the Turks. ith the signing of the Triple Alliance with Austria-Hungary and Germany the Italian interest in Balkans ecame more vivid. The Italian General Staff is a major player in this interest: Italian army considered the alkans as a unity in political and strategic terms. The Balkans at the turn of the century were defined in talian sources as “the Oriental Exchequer”. Although Austria was an ally, Italians thought of themselves as ounterbalance to Austria in the region. As the tension with Austria grew, States like Serbia, Montenegro, Bulgaria, Romania considered Italy as the opponent to the Austrian hegemony. Even though Italy was a uite new born State, struggling for its independence in the wars and political schemes of the Risorgimento ra, since 1878 it started to show a foreign policy interest for its Eastern neighbours, as Montenegro. talians were involved in Balkans, with iplomats, oliticians, skilled workers and immigrants, and military adres acting on the field.

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