Italy says reported €3B Ukraine air defense package not approved 

Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto said that a reported 13th package of military assistance for Ukraine had not been adopted and did not, as of that date, exist as a formal act. 

His statement, issued by the Italian Ministry of Defense on August 26, 2026, followed a report published the same day by La Repubblica. The newspaper said the Meloni government had settled the details of new military support weeks earlier and would soon formalize it through a 13th interministerial decree. 

La Repubblica linked the decree to a broader operation involving SAMP/T NG air defense systems, Aster 30 missiles, and long-range radars. It valued the operation at close to €3 billion and said it would be financed through European loans. 

Crosetto said no form of Italian assistance had been formalized during 2026. He did not dispute the underlying industrial cooperation, describing the offer made with France and the United Kingdom to help Ukraine build its own air defenses as an established position rather than a new one. 

Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said later that day that the Defense Ministry was preparing another package and that it would be presented to the parliamentary security oversight committee (COPASIR) before any delivery. 

Franco-Italian SAMP/T NG plan is already public 

Italian Army SAMP/T NG air defense system (Credit: Esercito Italiano)

The core procurement was set out publicly on July 14, 2026, in a joint declaration by Emmanuel Macron and Volodymyr Zelenskyy, following the letter of intent the two signed at Villacoublay on November 17, 2025. 

Ukraine intends to order four Franco-Italian SAMP/T NG systems and would become the first combat user of the type, with financing to be requested from the 2026 and 2027 tranches of the European Union Ukraine Support Loan. Five Thales GM400 radars, one Thales GF300, and one Leonardo Kronos were entered into the loan product schedules for 2026. 

France committed to progressive module deliveries from 2027, with one GF300 deployed in Ukraine before the end of 2026 and the five GM400s before the end of 2027. Two existing SAMP/T systems are to be sent to Ukraine during production and returned once the new systems arrive. Italy took delivery of its own first SAMP/T NG on January 22, 2026. 

France and Italy agreed to accelerate delivery of an unspecified quantity of Aster 30 missiles by October 2026 and to authorize licensed Aster 30 production in Ukraine before the end of the year. 

Funding and Italian approval remain pending 

While published documents describe the four systems, seven radars and licensed missile production, they do not say that they will be included in a 13th Italian aid decree. 

The Ukraine Support Loan is a €90 billion instrument covering 2026 and 2027, financed through EU borrowing and backed by the EU budget.  

The Council of the European Union set an indicative split of €30 billion for macroeconomic support and €60 billion for defense industrial capacity and procurement, with €28.3 billion made accessible in 2026 for Ukrainian defense industrial capacity. 

Italy’s Parliament authorized the government to continue providing civil and military assistance to Ukraine during 2026. Individual packages are assembled by the relevant ministries, presented to COPASIR and adopted as classified decrees. Twelve have been issued since 2022. Crosetto said that process had not been completed for a thirteenth package. The post Italy says reported €3B Ukraine air defense package not approved  appeared first on AeroTime.

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