This is how and why Crosetto denied the Navy missile report
Defense Minister Guido Crosetto denies Il Foglio: "Never talked about the Navy's limited availability of armaments." Regarding the Italian supply of missiles, the "number is classified, it cannot be said", Andrea Margelletti, president of the Centro Studi Internazionali (Cesi), tells Startmag, stating however that "the supply is dramatically lower than needed, but for everyone it is not only for Italy”. Facts and insights
Defense Minister Guido Crosetto denied Il Foglio regarding the number of missiles of the Italian Navy.
“I would like to point out that I have never declared what was reported by the newspaper 'Il Foglio' in the edition of 3 January 2024 and then taken up by some press organs, regarding a limited availability of armaments by the Navy”, communicated today the minister Crosetto through a note from Palazzo Baracchini.
In fact, just yesterday the newspaper edited by Claudio Cerasa reported the exact words: ""And to think that our Navy only has 63 missiles". A few days ago Guido Crosetto during a Defense commission let slip this numerical reflection which struck a chord with everyone present".
The meeting of the Defense Commission to which the Foglio "probably" refers is that of last December 27, when Minister Crosetto spoke in the commission for the parts falling within the competence of the Defense Commission on the 2024-2026 budget bill. In the transcript of the meeting bulletin, there is no reference to the "limited availability of armaments of the Navy".
On the other hand, the "number is classified, we cannot say how many missiles we have" Andrea Margelletti, president of the Center for International Studies (Cesi), remarked to Startmag , specifying that "it would be a violation of a secret, the minister is not crazy".
At the same time, President Margelletti highlighted that "the allocation is dramatically lower than needed, but for everyone, not just for Italy".
All the details.
THE POSITION OF MINISTER CROSETTO
Today Minister Crosetto made it known that "what was reported by other newspapers according to which I stated, again in the context of my interventions at the Defense Commission, that the Navy only has 63 missiles is also false. I invite journalists to read the minutes of the commission: they will not find confirmation of what they falsely reported. I don't know if the journalist got wrong information from someone who listened to my reasoning without paying due attention."
“On this occasion, I instead explained what it means to be involved in a complicated area like the Red Sea today, even just to defend oneself, recounting the shots that an American ship had to fire in a single day to defend itself,” he concluded Crosetto.
“Minister Crosetto's reference to the situation in the Red Sea is important: if we do not block the Houthi attacks, merchant traffic no longer passes through the Mediterranean, we as a country are going to die, since our economy is dictated by the Mediterranean”, reiterated the president of Cesi, who has already spoken on the issue on Startmag regarding Italy's sending of the Fasan ship to the Red Sea “as part of the Atalanta mission.
“It is essential that merchant shipping sails calmly, therefore it is equally essential to block the missiles that attack these ships. If it doesn't have them, how can it block them?” questions the president of Cesi.
AMMUNITION QUESTION
“The situation is dramatic and does not apply to Italy, but applies to all countries” Margelletti explained to Startmag .
“This has been demonstrated – continues the president of Cesi – firstly by the war in Ukraine and now by the Houthi affair, in war a very high number of ammunition is fired, not high, very high. This means that the amount of ammunition that Western countries have in their depots is totally inadequate. To ensure that what was once a remote possibility, war, is now an eventuality. We must therefore ensure that our armed forces are equipped to respond to this eventuality."
“The budget is dramatically lower than needed, but for everyone, not just for Italy” remarked President Margelletti.
REVALUATE AMMUNITION STOCKS
Already a year ago, the geopolitical analyst Germano Dottori, in an issue of Limes, noted that "In the prospect of a shock of greater proportions, however, ammunition stocks would need to be reevaluated: in March, Credendino had made it known that since June the embarked anti-aircraft missiles would no longer be operational. It will take time to replace them."
WHAT THE CHIEF OF STAFF OF THE NAVY HIGHLIGHTED
In particular, during the parliamentary hearing on 10 March 2022, the Chief of Staff of the Navy had pointed out: "The situation is critical in the part of ships with anti-aircraft capabilities. We have four DDGs, but two have exhausted their operational life, Mimbelli and De la Penne. The anti-aircraft missiles expire in June and can no longer be used. Only the Doria and the Duilio remain, which are essential for guaranteeing escort to the aircraft carriers and the amphibious group and for defending them. Without them these groups cannot go to sea and then contribute to the defense of the national territory against ballistic missiles, today ensured and guaranteed by the Americans who have four ships suitable for this purpose in the Mediterranean. Some reflections will have to be made on this."
“In any case,” Dottori reported on Limes , “voices and testimonies are multiplying which describe the missile launchers of our ships as practically empty. And it is a serious problem, even though it is now clear that in the event of a major conflict the issue of material consumption would affect all Western Armed Forces."
WE NEED FUNDS FOR DEFENSE
So what can you do to fix it?
According to the president of Cesi, "The fact that others have put their hands into their wallets by obtaining even important orders should make us understand that we should do the same."
“In fact, this can be remedied through an injection of funds into defense for the purchase of new ammunition and new armaments”, stated Andrea Margelletti, specifying: “If at the moment we have three conflicts (Ukraine, in the Red Sea and in Palestine) which in some way, directly, they affect the national interest, it is essential to recognize the danger, if we do not want to have this perception of danger, for reasons of internal politics, we are doing damage to the country".
WHAT IS IN THE DPP OF DEFENSE 2023-2025
For the naval component, in the Defense DPP 2023-2025 we read that "in addition to the completion of the Teseo MK2-A/E (Evolved) program which, although optimized for use in anti-ship functions, will have limited capabilities for engagement in depth of ground targets, it is necessary to acquire a long-range precision engagement capability, which in the short term could be represented by already existing systems supplied to other countries, such as the French Missile de Croisière Naval (MdCN ), otherwise called Scalp Naval”.
Furthermore, last summer Italy joined the Franco-British FC/ASW program which "envisages the development of an Anti-Ship missile capability starting from 2034 and Deep Strike starting from 2028, divided into three phases: Concept Phase (2017 -2021, completed), Assessment Phase (2022-2024) and Demonstration and Manufacture Phase (2025-2035), the costs of which are not yet well defined due to the finalization of the international agreements in the implementation phase (Assessment Phase)" as still reads in the DPP among the programs scheduled to launch.
Also among the latter there is also "the program for the development, industrialization and qualification of the MARTE Extended Range anti-ship missile, as well as the related acquisition of the relevant equipment and ten-year logistical support. Compared to the version currently in service with the Navy (MK2S), the MARTE ER missile will benefit from radical changes regarding the range, guidance system, weight and dimensions. The version will be used by Navy EH-101 and NH-90 helicopters."
THE NEEDS OF THE NAVY
Finally, according to expert Margelletti, Italy must focus on quantity for its defense.
“We need more ships. Unfortunately, as commitments multiply, we need more ships. After that, we need a significant number of defense missiles to protect us and the interests we need to protect. Then long-range missiles are needed, possibly to strike where the attack was launched" explained the president of Cesi. “We have demonstrated that the underwater threat is fundamental, therefore torpedoes are needed” continued Margelletti.
“It's not that we have nothing, the key point is to increase the stock of what we have. We don't have to invent anything, we have air defense missiles, as well as torpedoes, radars and ships. It is very important to increase the quantity of stocks, because we don't know what tomorrow will be like" concluded the president of Cesi.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/mondo/ecco-come-e-perche-crosetto-ha-smentito-il-foglio-sui-missili-della-marina/ on Thu, 04 Jan 2024 15:19:45 +0000.