"Simply ridiculous": Italy's government somewhat denies Starlink negotiations
The Prime Minister does not deny that Italy is negotiating a Starlink booking for the government. However, she did deny talks with Donald Trump.
(Image: Starlink)
The report of negotiations between the Italian government and the US space company SpaceX on a multi-billion euro contract to provide secure communication via the Starlink satellite internet has caused quite a stir in Italy. This was reported by the Italian news agency ANSA. While the office of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has denied that she has spoken to the upcoming US President Donald Trump about this, her coalition partner has welcomed negotiations with SpaceX boss and Trump confidant Elon Musk. Sharp criticism came from the opposition, and Elon Musk himself promoted his company.
“Ridiculous” report
The background to the uproar is a report by the US financial magazine Bloomberg. It stated that the extreme right-wing Italian government had been negotiating with SpaceX for a year and a half regarding the provision of a secure telecommunications infrastructure via Starlink. However, after stalling, the matter is said to have been revived following a visit by Meloni to Donald Trump. The report stated that Italy could pay 1.6 billion US dollars for a five-year contract. Intelligence agencies and the Ministry of Defense had already agreed. Among other things, the Starlink alternative IRIS2, which is being promoted by the EU, could be bypassed.
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As ANSA has now summarized in several reports, Meloni's office has stated that the Prime Minister has not spoken to Trump about the negotiations. This is simply “ridiculous”. Nor had a contract been signed or agreements reached. However, this does not deny that negotiations are taking place in principle. In any case, they are welcomed by Meloni's coalition partner and deputy, Matteo Salvini. He has long been an admirer of Musk. Meanwhile, the opposition accuses the government of the planned sale being tantamount to a sell-out of Italy, with which the government wants to secure the friendship of the new US leadership. This will not be accepted.
Meanwhile, Musk himself has assured that they are prepared to provide Italy with the “safest and most advanced connectivity”. However, contrary to reports to the contrary, the sudden resignation of Italy's intelligence chief probably has nothing to do with the negotiations.
(mho)
