U.S. Navy helicopters at Piano Catarineci: Sicily between political alarm and protection of natural heritage

"The landing of U.S. Navy war helicopters in the heart of Sicily, at Piano Catarineci, is not just an environmental issue: it is yet another unilateral act that risks dragging our Island and Italy into a scenario of military tension without any information or democratic debate".

This was denounced by Valentina Chinnici, regional deputy and regional deputy secretary of the Democratic Party, who announced an urgent inquiry to the president of the Region, Renato Schifani.

The news, spread through the official social channels of the U.S. Navy, has sparked strong protests from the mayors of the Madonie Unesco Global Geopark and the president of the Park, who have written to the regional government and the prefect to request clarifications on the incident.

"The first alert is of a political and institutional nature – explains Chinnici -. We are facing a foreign military exercise conducted in full autonomy, in a strategic area of Sicily. In a heated international scenario, where President Mattarella has warned of the risks of unilateral actions that undermine international order, we cannot passively witness flights and landings of American military vehicles without the regional and national government saying a word. We need to urgently know if Schifani and the Prefecture were notified, and who authorized this flight plan. We cannot allow Sicily to be perceived as a "aircraft carrier" at the mercy of decisions made elsewhere, without any legitimization from European and international bodies and in disregard of national sovereignty".

The Democratic parliamentarian also raises the issue of environmental protection. "What makes the situation even more absurd – she observes – is the fact that these military maneuvers have been conducted in an area of invaluable natural value: Piano Catarineci is a special conservation area of the Natura 2000 network, located in the heart of the Madonie Park, protected by Unesco".