Fascist Italy and the Middle East, 1933-40

Under Mussolini's leadership, Fascist Italy sought to increase its influence in the Middle East. This book examines the motivations behind Italy's policy, the diverse methods it employed and the reasons why Italian efforts ultimately failed. By looking at foreign, colonial, cultural and military policies,Fascist Italy and the Middle Eastprovides a new and challenging interpretation of the ambitions and contradictions of Mussolini's Italy. It analyzes the intricate relations between the ideological, political, strategic and religious interests that guided the Fascist regime's dealings with this region and looks at how Italian policies were propagated and received by Middle Eastern societies. It also uncovers for the first time the grandiose plans that were prepared in the summer of 1940 for Fascist territorial expansion in Africa and the Middle East. 'This book is especially useful for scholars of the period as well as for students of the foreign policy of Fascism. Arielli's work straddles the crossroads of philology and political and diplomatic history and attempts to explain a complex phenomenon tied to the Fascist regime. It illuminates pages in Italian history that are not often remembered.' -Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs