Italy will significantly increase its defence and security spending next year, but Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni argued that NATO allies should focus less on spending targets and more on adapting to the changing nature of warfare.
Addressing parliament on Thursday, Meloni said she would inform NATO leaders at next month's summit that Italy plans to allocate around 2.8% of GDP to defence and security in 2026, up from last year's level. Much of the increase will come from domestic security spending, including certain police functions that can now be counted under updated NATO guidelines.
Meloni cautioned against judging military strength solely by defence budgets or conventional weapons systems. She said the conflict in Ukraine had demonstrated how rapidly battlefield realities are evolving.
According to Meloni, drones have transformed the front line, making movement difficult and allowing relatively inexpensive systems to destroy costly military hardware.
She argued that NATO members should reassess the strategic value of assets such as satellites, data infrastructure and cyber capabilities alongside traditional equipment like tanks and aircraft carriers.
Highlighting the growing role of technology in warfare, Meloni said some countries are investing in training young people with gaming skills to operate drones remotely in future conflicts.
She suggested that data protection and digital capabilities are becoming as important as conventional military assets, calling for a broader debate among Western allies about how to prepare for future security challenges.
The discussion comes as U.S. President Donald Trump continues to press NATO allies to spend more on defence, arguing that European governments have relied too heavily on American military support. Trump has urged allies in Europe and Asia to increase defence spending to 3.5% of GDP.
The debate has also exposed tensions within allied governments. Britain's Defence Secretary John Healey resigned on Thursday following a dispute over military funding, saying the government had not committed sufficient resources to address growing security threats.
Italy's Defence Minister Guido Crosetto said he understood Healey's frustrations, noting that many defence ministers face similar challenges as governments balance security demands with budget pressures.
U.S. President Donald Trump has called it “a disgrace” that Ukraine has resumed attacks on Russian oil refineries. Attacks are continui...
The U.S. has banned government employees working in Saudi Arabia from using airports in the country without special authorisation. It com...
Romanian rescuers resumed their search for seven missing sailors on Friday (16 October) after a drone strike set a chemical tanker ablaze near the ...
The Saudi-led coalition said early Thursday that it intercepted and destroyed a drone over Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province.
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The U.S. has banned government employees working in Saudi Arabia from using airports in the country without special authorisation. It comes after a deadly Houthi strike on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport killed at least 13 people last week.
Ukraine's soldiers have had their access to Starlink satellite internet restricted. Kyiv's troops use the terminals, made by Elon Musk's SpaceX, to pilot drones. A source in Ukraine's Defence Ministry said the restrictions would make it harder for Kyiv's army to down Russian drones.
Ukraine is set to restart attacks on Russian oil refineries following a two-day pause, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, amid growing tensions with Washington over energy strikes and U.S. military support.
U.S. President Donald Trump has called it “a disgrace” that Ukraine has resumed attacks on Russian oil refineries. Attacks are continuing from Russia and Ukraine as media reports say Ukraine has almost run out of Patriot interceptor missiles.
Romanian rescuers resumed their search for seven missing sailors on Friday (16 October) after a drone strike set a chemical tanker ablaze near the country’s Black Sea coast. The attacks have raised fresh security concerns along a vital regional trade route.
Students, lecturers and university staff marched on Argentina’s Congress in Buenos Aires on Thursday to demand President Javier Milei’s government implement a university funding law which would boost staff salaries and increase financial support to institutions to cover operating costs
A 16-year-old shooter opened fire on Thursday at an elementary school in Bend, Oregon in the United States, killing four people, including three children, before being killed by an armed member of the community who had pursued the assailant into the school, police said.
France is preparing for a fresh wave of nationwide demonstrations this weekend as rising living costs, education concerns and growing political tensions converge into one of the most significant protest movements seen in the country in recent years.
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