Italy is set to present a guarantee scheme to its European partners that could potentially catalyze investments of up to 200 billion euros ($216.48 billion) in the defense and aerospace sectors, according to sources familiar with the situation.
Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti is scheduled to outline this initiative during a meeting of European Union finance ministers in Brussels later today, as reported by the sources.
The European Union is exploring various strategies to enhance defense spending, including new collective borrowing, utilizing existing EU funds, and increasing the role of the European Investment Bank (EIB), with decisions anticipated in June.
Italy supports these discussions and is eager to devise methods to mitigate the impact of increased defense spending on its already strained public finances, as state guarantees typically affect the budget when utilized.
The proposed scheme, known as the European Security and Industrial Innovation Initiative, is expected to leverage approximately 17 billion euros in European guarantees to stimulate 200 billion euros in investments over a period of up to five years, according to the sources.
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