Minister Crosetto meets with the Director General of the European Space Agency.

Immagini messe a disposizione con licenza
CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 DEED

This morning, Defence Minister Guido Crosetto met with Josef Aschbacher, Director General of the European Space Agency (ESA). During the meeting, Minister Crosetto reiterated Italy's strong commitment to strengthening European cooperation in the aerospace sector.

“I stressed the importance of investing in this rapidly growing sector, as many other countries are already doing. This has significant implications, particularly with regard to research and development in civil, defence, and environmental fields,” said Minister Crosetto, who added:

“Italy not only participates in the space sector, it also leads it with authority. We are one of the few countries in the world to have a complete aerospace supply chain, from launchers to orbiting modules, satellites and sensors. This confirms our position among the top ten global space countries and fourth in Europe in terms of sector turnover. Programmes such as COSMO SkyMed, IRIDE and Galileo, as well as the development of “Space Factory 4.0” in hubs such as Rome, Bari and Turin, demonstrate how Italy combines research, innovation and advanced production. This consolidates a long value chain involving over 500 companies, including large groups, SMEs and start-ups, working in the fields of satellites, propulsion, avionics and digital production.

Targeted action to strengthen the synergy between the European Space Agency (ESA), the Italian Space Agency (ASI), the Ministry of Defence and national industry in dual projects is therefore essential: only in this way can we support the competitiveness of our technological excellence at the European and global levels. Space is a strategic domain in which Italy and Europe must assert themselves with greater strength, autonomy and independence.“

Today's meeting follows the one held on 18 June on the sidelines of the International Paris Air Show in Le Bourget.