Military manpower—reaching military age annually:
males: 50,737
females: 48,546 (1999 est.)
Military expenditures—dollar figure: $8.7 billion (1999)
Military expenditures—percent of GDP: 9.5% (1999)
Transnational Issues
Disputes—international: West Bank and Gaza Strip are
Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the
Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement—permanent status to be
determined through further negotiation; Golan Heights is
Israeli-occupied; Israeli troops in southern Lebanon since June 1982
Illicit drugs: increasingly concerned about cocaine and heroin
abuse; drugs primarily arrive in country from Lebanon
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@Italy ——-
Introduction
Background: Italy failed to secure political unification until the 1860s, thus lacking the military and imperial power of Spain, Britain, and France. The fascist dictatorship of MUSSOLINI after World War I, led to the disastrous alliance with HITLER's Germany and defeat in World War II. Italy was a founding member of the European Economic Community (EEC) and joined in the growing political and economic unification of Western Europe, including the introduction of the euro in January 1999. On-going problems include illegal immigration, the ravages of organized crime, high unemployment, and the low incomes and technical standards of Southern Italy compared with the North.