A Mistaken History? A Survey of the Short Century of Italian-Yugoslav Relations

The essay provides an overview of the relations between Italy and Yugoslavia, from the constitution of the kingdom SHS until the dissolution of the Federal Republic. The author discusses the argument put forward by Sergio Romano, according to which Italy seemed condemned by history to miscalculate constantly the timing of its Yugoslav policy. The essay then examines the different phases of the bilateral relations: the initial rejection of the Italian Government, after the First World War, to recognize the existence of the new state of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes; the turning point imprinted by Giolitti and Sforza; the oscillations of the fascist foreign policy; the aggression of 1941, the occupation and annexations; the behavior of the Italian troops; the strategy and the ambitions of the liberation movement led by Yugoslav communists; Tito's plans for the war in the Balkans and in Italy; the "crisis of Trieste" of spring 1945; the peace treaty of 1947 and the fate of the Free Territory of Trieste; the exodus of the Giulian-Dalmatian; the new partnership policy of the 60s and the "most open border in Europe"; the Osimo Treaty; the dual crisis - Italian and Yugoslav - in the 90s.