Leonardo and Fincantieri run after Trump's defence relaunch

(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - The defence sector is shining in Italy and in Europe, with the international geopolitical picture that shows no sign of stabilising. The winds of war and the still distant peace on the hot front of Ukraine are fuelling purchases on defence stocks. In Milan, the stars of the Ftse Mib Fincantieri and Leonardo - Finmeccanica. Tonic quotes also for Airbus Group in Paris, Rheinmetall , Renk and Hensoldt in Frankfurt, and Bae System in London .

Throwing fuel on the fire again is US President Donald Trump who announced the launch of a new class of large warships that will bear his name. These ships will be "the best in the world", Trump assured during a press conference from his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, pointing out that two warships of the "Trump Class USS Defiant' will be built to begin with. "The tycoon stated that this new class ofships of "30,000 to 40,000 tons"is designed as a message "for everybody". The plan initially envisages two ships, but will later be expanded to ten and eventually twenty to twenty-five.

The White House tenant then returned to Greenland, which - he said during a speech together with Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth in Palm Beach, Florida -the United States "needs" to ensure its security vis-à-vis China and Russia. "If we look at the coast of Greenland, there are Russian and Chinese ships everywhere. We need them for our national security,' the president insisted, emphasising that Greenlanders 'are not protected militarily' by Copenhagen. The statements followed the announcement by the US head of state of the appointment of a special envoy (Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry) for the Danish autonomous territory.

All this while tensions between the United States and Venezuela are increasingly high, with the persistent blockade of crude shipments from the South American country. According to the Associated Press, President Donald Trump met last night with Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defence, Pete Hegseth, and Secretary of the Navy, John Phelan, at his Mar-a-Lago resort, from where he issued new threats to President Nicolás Maduro: if the Venezuelan leader 'plays hardball,' Trump said, 'it will be the last time he will be able to do that.

On the Ukrainian front, meanwhile,Russia launched an airstrike on Kiev at dawn, according to Ukrainian military reports. The new raid comes just days after the conclusion on Sunday of a round of US-led peace talks in Miami, which brought together US officials with Ukrainian and European delegations, along with separate contacts with Russian representatives.