Italy: Confusion over Starlink contract
January 8, 2025
This past weekend it was widely reported that the Italian government had chosen Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite broadband service in a massive $1.6 billion (€1.4bn) 5-year deal to equip its military with secure connectivity.
The news emerged as Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni visited President-elect Donald Trump at his Florida home on January 4th.
The reports seemed questionable given that Italy is an EU (and European Space Agency) member and thus a partner in the upcoming – and costly – IRIS2 SpaceRISE consortium which is specifically designed to provide highly secure satellite communications for governmental and military needs.
On the surface there would seem to be little point in duplicating investment in largely similar provisions. However, the “5-year” quoted period could be a gap-filler ahead of the SpaceRISE introduction in 2029-2030.
Indeed, on January 7th and further confounding the issue, Italian government sources firmly denied that any such deal with SpaceX/Starlink had been discussed, let alone announced. One source described the reports as “ridiculous” as far as any discussions were concerned.
Italy’s Presidency also denied that any contracts or agreements had been concluded. However, the Presidency’s formal statement said that any discussions with SpaceX were part of the normal investigations that the Italian State have with companies, and added that the topic was not discussed during the meeting between Trump and their Prime Minister.
Nevertheless, the reports continued, saying: “Discussions are ongoing, and a final agreement on the five-year contract hasn’t been reached, said quoted sources who asked not to be identified citing confidential discussions. The project has already been approved by Italy’s Intelligence Services as well as Italy’s Defense Ministry.”
Bloomberg reported the possible scheme also includes communications services for the Italian military in the Mediterranean area as well as the rollout of so-called direct-to-cell satellite services in Italy for use in emergencies like terror attacks or natural disasters.
Italian security minister Guido Crosetto defended involvement during a parliamentary hearing, arguing Musk’s dominance over low-Earth orbit connectivity makes him an indispensable partner, according to EuroNews.
Other posts by Chris Forrester: