MICHELE NORRIS, host:
We turn now to Rome, where President Bush arrived today. He's on a third leg of his weeklong sweep through Europe. The Italian capital was put under extremely tight security. In the past, Romans have greeted Mr. Bush with protest. This time, though, they seemed largely indifferent to the arrival of the leader who remains deeply unpopular in Italy.
NPR's Sylvia Poggioli reports from Rome.
SYLVIA POGGIOLI: Hours before the presidential motorcade was later to arrive, helicopters hung over the streets of Rome, snipers were in position on rooftops, and an estimated 10,000 police officers were mobilized. It was rush hour and hundreds of stalled Roman drivers were sitting in their cars as the city center was shut down. These elderly pedestrians were also fuming.
Unidentified Man #1: (Speaking foreign language)
POGGIOLI: One said why do we have to deal with his mess? Another complaint: What the heck do we care about Bush, the entire city is at a standstill. Even Tom Hanks and the rest of the "Angels and Demons" film crew had to take a day off shooting on location because of the security measures.
George W. Bush has never been popular in Italy. In 2003, as the U.S. was preparing to go to war in Iraq, three million protesters flooded the streets of Rome. And today, the newly installed right-wing government of Silvio Berlusconi was bracing for the worst. Hundreds of inmates were transferred out of Rome's central jail to make room for possible arrests of violent demonstrators at the anti-Bush rally. But only a small fraction of the usual suspects dusted off their anti-war banners.
Unidentified Group: (Singing) Yankee, Yankee, Yankee go home.
POGGIOLI: No more than about 2,000 protesters, radical leftists and anti-war activists showed up. Middle-aged peace activist Maria Kiarastarache(ph) lamented the collective apathy. She warned that President Bush still has several months in office.
Ms. MARIA KIARASTARACHE: Yeah, they don't realize (unintelligible) the last moment to do wrong things and dangerous things.
Unidentified Man #2: (Speaking foreign language)
POGGIOLI: The speaker addressing the crowd said Italy is host to 116 American and NATO bases that, he claimed, will be used if President Bush decides to attack Iran. Iran, in fact, is likely to be one of the major topics President Bush will discuss with his host and friend Prime Minister Berlusconi. Italy has already agreed with the U.S. to follow a tougher line toward Tehran if it fails to stop uranium enrichment. Italy is also hoping to gain a place at the table in the five-plus-one group which seeks to curb Iranian nuclear aspirations. But Germany is firmly opposed, citing Italy's ambiguous position as Iran's number one western trade partner.
Berlusconi, who once said he's on America's side even before he knows what's at stake, has also promised Washington that he will increase Italian troops in Afghanistan and ease combat restrictions, enabling Italian forces to fight against the Taliban. But many analysts say it's not clear whether Berlusconi will maintain all these promises or wait to negotiate with the next administration. Former Prime Minister Giuliano Amato says there's widespread disaffection with President Bush's record.
Mr. GIULIANO AMATO (Former Prime Minister, Italy): Italians understand things. We know that, like it or not, the positions upon which it built the foreign policy of the country have been defeated.
POGGIOLI: Amato says Europeans are already looking to rebuild the transatlantic relationship, and he has a word of advice for the next U.S. president.
Mr. AMATO: The priority is to make the U.S. seem (unintelligible) to the world. That's it.
POGGIOLI: Sylvia Poggioli, NPR News, Rome. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
