Safe: Italy remains “fully on board” with the project

After weeks of visible uncertainty and high tensions over defence spending, Italy is preparing to use a ‘large majority’ of the €14.9 billion in loans initially earmarked under SAFE, the EU’s instrument for military procurement. There is as yet no exact figure, as the agreement between Rome and Brussels has not been signed, but for the European Commission, the “assurances” received from the Italian government are sufficient to confirm that Rome remains “fully on board” with the European defence project.

The Safe programme, totalling 150 billion euros, had raised a number of issues within the Meloni government over recent weeks: Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani had initially announced Italy’s intention to use the full 14.9 billion requested, only to later clarify that this sum represented the maximum amount ‘reserved’, whilst the decision on the actual amount would be made by the end of the year. This situation has exposed a genuine rift between Meloni and Tajani’s parties and the Lega, which is strongly opposed to an increase in military spending.

At the end of July, it was the Commission itself that urged Rome to provide greater clarity, warning that the December deadline was not compatible with the need to recover and reallocate any unused funds to other Member States. Among the potential recipients, Poland stands out, having already been the leading beneficiary of the SAFE programme with around 43 billion euros.

Over the past month, as reported today, discussions between Rome and Brussels have, in fact, made significant progress: “The Commission has held discussions with Italy on two points: the final amount that Italy could receive and the timing of the decision,” explained European Commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier, concluding that “Italy remains fully committed to European defence and to this project”.

Defence funding has dominated the political debate for weeks, becoming intertwined with the debate over whether or not to activate the national safeguard clause for military spending. Meanwhile, Italy has announced its intention to invoke derogations from the Pact regarding energy expenditure and is expected to submit a formal request to Brussels.