Focusing on the four most prominent political parties, the paper explores opinions and reactions to different manifestations of the terrorist problem. It also attempts to show that, though each party stands in principle against terrorism, there is much variation in the degree to which this is true. These variations are explained in the light of interparty conflicts, attitudes of the parties towards the United States and towards foreign policy issues, and considering the basic political necessities that confront the Italian elites as a government. These necessities have prevented the Italian Government from acting quickly and cohesively and have even led to the near collapse of the government. Internal conflicts have also prevented Italy from being able to cooperate fully with the United States and its European allies in the war against terrorism. (Author abstract)