From Italy soon the ninth military aid package for Ukraine. Meloni-Stoltenberg summit tomorrow

"In the coming weeks we will approve a new aid package for Ukraine so that it can continue to defend itself against Russia". This was announced by Defence Minister Guido Crosetto, speaking in the Chamber of Deputies at the meeting of the Special Mediterranean and Middle East Group of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. The government's objective is to put it in place before the G7 meeting in Puglia, on 13 June in Borgo Egnazia. Another date to circle on the agenda is 9 July, when a NATO summit will be held in Washington.

The one announced would be the ninth package. Decree Law 200/2023 extended until 31 December this year the authorisation for the transfer of military means, materials and equipment to the government authorities of Ukraine. The new package, which will be presented by the government - as always shrouded in secrecy - to Copasir, is expected to include the medium-to-long-range Samp-T air defence and anti-missile system that the Defence Ministers of Italy and France had announced on 27 January 2023 to donate to Volodymyr Zelensky's army. Stinger surface-to-air missiles could also be delivered to the Ukrainians.

The Italian Execito website states that the Samp-T has been developed 'since the early 2000s as part of the Italian-French Fsaf (Family of Surface Air Systems) programme. The current version of Samp-T has state-of-the-art capabilities in countering air threats and short-range tactical ballistic missiles'. Italy has five batteries, one of which was deployed in Turkey from 2016 to 2019 against tactical ballistic missiles from Syrian territory.

Meanwhile tomorrow, Wednesday 8 May, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will meet NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at Palazzo Chigi. The issue of military aid to Ukraine will be among those at the centre of the meeting, as well as the equally delicate issue of defence spending. The Atlantic Alliance is in fact asking for a greater contribution from the member countries. And Italy is among them. The issue of 'burden sharing', i.e. respecting the commitments made at the NATO Summit between Heads of State and Government, held in Wales in September 2014, then reaffirmed in Warsaw in 2016 with the so-called 'Defence Investment Pledge (DIP)', continues to represent one of the central political issues in the debate developing within the Atlantic Alliance.