Italy Faces One-Month Deadline to Secure €15 bn EU Defence Fund

The European Commission has told Rome it has about a month to decide whether to take up its allocation of nearly €15 billion from the EU's Strategic‑autonomous‑fund‑for‑defence‑equipment (SAFE) programme. If Italy does not commit within the timeframe, the money will be re‑allocated to other member states that have already signed executive contracts.

Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti said the choice is a purely financial one, comparing the cost of borrowing under the SAFE programme (approximately 3.4 % over 40 years) with the yield on Italy’s 10‑year BTP (about 3.6 %). He indicated that, “if the SAFE cost is lower, we should take it”. Defence Minister Guido Crosetto echoed the urgency, noting that the EU expects a clear decision “very soon”. Both ministers said the final decision on the extra defence spending will be taken by September.

The SAFE programme gives participating EU countries access to up to €150 billion of low‑interest loans from the Commission, linked to joint procurement projects for defence equipment and, in some cases, support for Ukraine. Italy’s initial approval came in late January as part of the second tranche of funding, alongside Estonia, Finland, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Slovakia.