The Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, reiterated this Wednesday that Italy supports NATO's objective of increasing defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2035, although she stressed that Rome intends to achieve it following its own timeline and order of action. At the same time, she insisted that all her decisions are guided by "national interest" and not by any personal rapport she may have with other leaders, thus alluding to the US President, Donald Trump.
Meloni recalled at the press conference following the Atlantic Alliance summit in Ankara that Italy is currently the ally with the largest number of military personnel deployed abroad, with 3,000 troops, and that it already dedicates 2.8% of GDP to "defense and security," which represents an increase of 0.71% compared to the previous year.
As the head of government argued, this additional effort responds to the "broader idea" that Italy has about "national security and strategic resilience." In this context, she emphasized that her government intends to "respect the commitments" made to NATO, but "in a sustainable way."
"That is to say, we establish the times, the methods, the priorities, based on the context and our possibilities," she stressed.
In the same vein, she reiterated, in line with the position also maintained by the Spanish government, that currently talking about security "does not only mean talking about defense in the traditional sense of the term, although it is obviously important, but it also means talking about the protection of critical infrastructures, energy security, cybersecurity and therefore the security of data, families, businesses, public administrations."
Meloni insisted that "the time has come for Europe to guarantee its own security on its own, not to do someone a favor, but to not depend on someone." "It is therefore a matter of sovereignty, even before defense," she added.
Disagreements with Trump and defense of Italian interest
In relation to recent friction with Trump, motivated among other issues by Rome's refusal to authorize the use of Italian bases in the military operation against Iran, the Italian leader stressed that all her decisions are made with the country's interests in mind. "And therefore, I absolutely do not regret anything I have done," she stated.
The prime minister explained that her roadmap is supported "by the Italian and European interest" which, she said, involves "the unity and strengthening of Western unity." "I have not changed my mind on this, regardless of how my personal relationships may fluctuate," she assured, emphasizing that this is a "strategy dictated by conviction and not by electoral convenience."
Meloni added that this political orientation did not begin with Trump's arrival, with whom she acknowledged there are "affinities on some issues, from immigration to 'woke' culture, which is why I thought it would be easier." "Things are turning out as you have seen, but I am not changing my mind about what the Italian interest is," she pointed out.
At this point, she asserted that her government has maintained "a very clear line since the beginning of the conflict in Iran and continues to do so." "We have respected our obligations as serious countries always do" but "we have said that we would not participate in attacks on Iran and we are not participating nor will we participate in attacks on Iran."