Mare Nostrum to Egypt, and "mare nostrum" began to be used in the context of the whole Mediterranean Sea. Other names were also employed, including "mare internum" ("Internal Sea"), but these did not include "mare mediterraneum", which was a late Latin creation only attested to well after the Fall of Rome. The rise of Italian nationalism during the "Scramble for Africa" of the 1880s led to calls for the establishment of an Italian colonial empire. The phrase was first revived by the Italian poet Gabriele d'Annunzio. The term was again taken up by Benito Mussolini for use in fascist propaganda, in a
Operation Mare Nostrum and Italian Air Force. The navy units deployed consisted of: The air units involved helicopters, one MM P180 aircraft equipped with FLIR, two Camcopter S-100 unmanned aerial vehicles on board "San Giusto" ship and two maritime patrol aircraft. There was also one forward logistic site in Lampedusa for logistics support. According to Italian Interior Minister Angelino Alfano, the government spent about €114 million ($142 million) on Operation Mare Nostrum. Foreign contributions Slovenia was the sole external contributor to the operation. It provided its patrol vessel "Triglav", which assisted in general surveillance of the waters surrounding Lampedusa from December 15th, 2013