The Italian Minister of Defence, Guido Crosetto, met today with the Minister of the Armed Forces of France, Sébastien Lecornu, at the Raffalli military camp in Calvi (Corsica). At the end of a very cordial meeting, the two ministers signed a letter of intent for the establishment of the European Land Industrial Hub.
“The world has changed, there is no turning back and we must prepare for scenarios that may be even more complex than the current ones. Italy and France must strengthen their cooperation because the political, military and industrial future of Europe starts from the great nations that built Europe. Divided we are weak, but united Europe can be strong, thanks to the historical, cultural and value heritage of centuries of history and the extraordinary industrial and knowledge capacities of our countries. There are no political parties or elections that divide us; we have the same interest and the same goal: to serve our nation in the best possible way,” said Minister Crosetto.
“Today we have signed a letter of intent,” he added, “which aims to have a European industrial hub in the terrestrial field where the best Italian and French companies in the sector will converge. It is essential to bring together all the best European technologies and to make the poles ever stronger, because we will need major investments to keep up with technological developments. If we deal with countries such as China, we need to systematize financial, technological, industrial and human resources to have a defense industry capable of supporting our Armed Forces and providing them with effective equipment and weapon systems. The Armed Forces need an industry that operates with the same speed, the same love for the homeland and the same determination that our soldiers have who fight for peace and democracy.”
The European Land Industrial Hub, which will be born from this agreement between Minister Crosetto and his French counterpart Lecornu, aims to strengthen Europe’s industrial cooperation and defensive capabilities through the joint development of new land platforms. The strategic alliance will make it possible to implement collaborative programs between European nations through the strengthening of industrial bases and the development of the next generation of platforms, including the MGCS (Main Ground Combat System). The programme will integrate new state-of-the-art technologies, including artificial intelligence, ensuring an autonomous and consolidated European defence technological and industrial base.
The signing of the agreement represents a significant step towards an integrated European defence, a pillar of the Atlantic Alliance, capable of responding to the challenges of the present and the future.
The current situation in the Middle East and Ukraine was also at the centre of the talks, as well as the common desire to increase synergies between the Member States of the European Union in order to achieve an end to hostilities and a just peace. The two ministers expressed their satisfaction, on the sidelines of the meeting, as evidence of their common commitment and willingness to contribute to the defence of the values of freedom, peace and democracy.

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