(ANSA) - SOFIA, 18 APR - Italy's President Sergio Mattarella arrived at the NATO base in Novo Selo in eastern Bulgaria. About 700 Italian military personnel are also participating in the Atlantic Alliance mission on the eastern borders of the European Union. "You carry out a task that aims to achieve peace and security, and this is a constant characteristic of our Armed Forces in the tasks entrusted to them by Parliament and government and carried out in so many places, even far away," the president said, speaking from the NATO base. Still speaking about Italy's international missions, the president underlined that they are all "carried out to guarantee and restore peace where it is endangered." In this way, the head of state again said, "We make a great contribution to the international community." (ANSA).