Defence: Safe still at a standstill. The EU is pressing: ‘Italia has one month to decide’
But there are no strict, non-negotiable deadlines. Crosetto passes the ball back to the Ministry of Economy and Finance: ‘It depends on what Giorgetti can do.’ The Minister for the Economy: ‘We’ll see how much the debt costs.’
Key points
The issue of the Safe loan for defence continues to be a topic of debate: the Government, which had earmarked 14.9 billion in August 2025, has not yet decided whether to activate it. Now the European Union, through a senior source close to the matter interviewed by ANSA, is stepping up the pressure: Italia still has ‘one month’ to decide what it intends to do with the programme’s funds, after which the money will be redistributed amongst the other participants, given the high level of interest shown. This is the timeframe within which the Commission is committed to signing the final contracts with the other capitals and finalising Hungary’s participation. Once this window closes, the source continues, ‘clarity will be needed’ from Rome.
There are no strict deadlines
In fact, as institutional sources confirm, there are no absolute deadlines. However, the European Commission will certainly, at some point, expect Italia to make a decision so that it can reallocate the remaining funds.
Crosetto: ‘It depends on what Giorgetti is capable of’
Within the Government, as has been evident for weeks now, two positions are at odds. On the one hand, the Defence Minister, Guido Crosetto, who has consistently emphasised the need for Italia to make the necessary investments and who had presented a detailed plan for the Safe programme. Even today, in an interview at the ‘Day of Truth’ event, he stated that the decision rests with the Ministry of the Economy: ‘Giancarlo (Giorgetti – ed.) knows exactly what I would like, and I know exactly what he is capable of doing. As for SAFE, it depends on what he is able to do.” However, referring to the 0.15 per cent increase in defence spending as a proportion of GDP, he also added that he expects “the commitment we have made to go ahead in next year’s budget; I know that Giorgetti is fully aware of this. It’s impossible to have a row with Giorgetti; I, on the other hand, am more hot-headed. Giancarlo and I are friends. I know what it meant to him that we didn’t exit the infringement procedure.”
The Minister for the Economy and Finance: the assessment concerns the cost of debt
Shortly afterwards, on the same stage, it was Giorgetti’s turn to have his say. On the SAFE loan, he stated: ‘The expenditure is one thing; the financial scale is another. To fund defence, I can use either Italians’ taxes or public debt in the form of BTPs, or I can resort to SAFEs. As Minister for the Economy and Finance, I must assess whether these 15 billion in SAFEs, as debt, cost more or less than BTPs’. In short: ‘The issue with SAFEs is purely financial.’
Defence: decision on spending increase to be made in September
“The increase in defence spending, on the other hand, is a different matter; it depends on international commitments and is also made possible by the flexibility clause in the Stability Pact. And on this matter, I have, of course, outlined a compatible approach for the coming years, which Defence Minister Guido Crosetto is certainly aware of, and which ‘in a few weeks’ time, by September at the latest, we should finalise and proceed to approve’.”
