Secretary of Defense Ash Carter spoke by phone this morning with Italian Minister of Defense Roberta Pinotti. They last met in October when Secretary Carter traveled to Sigonella and Rome. Secretary Carter thanked Minister Pinotti for Italy's valuable contributions to the counter-ISIL campaign, including Italy's recent decision to deploy additional troops inside Iraq. They also discussed next steps on security cooperation in Libya following recent progress on the political track. Secretary Carter and Minister Pinotti agreed to continue their in-depth dialogue on counterterrorism and other defense issues.