Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone on bolstering the military. On Wednesday, the Chief of Italy’s Defence Staff spoke of the government’s initiatives to increase the Armed Forces from 150,000 to 160,000 military personnel. Speaking before select Parliament Committees, he acknowledged the progress but called to take further steps, “given the various fronts in which we are engaged, from the Middle East to NATO’s Eastern flank, the enlarged Mediterranean” and the Army’s street patrolling operation,
More reservists. Admiral Cavo Dragone called to add at least 10,000 additional units in the near future, just hours after Defence Minister Guido Crosetto told MPs of his plan to reinforce the Armed Forces – including through more reservists – to increase their preparedness in a scenario of worsening instability.
- There will be the “progressive activation of an auxiliary reserve of the State, made up of personnel coming from the civilian world and with previous military experience. This auxiliary reserve could be used in times of war or international crisis, as well as in the event of a state of emergency declared by the government or in emergencies of national importance linked to catastrophic events,” explained the former.
Defence spending and NATO. The Chief of Italy’s Defence Staff, who’s set to replace Admiral Rob Bauer at the helm of the Atlantic Alliance’s Military Committee, also recalled that the NATO-wide target of spending 2% of GDP on defence should be reached in 2028, rising from €27.7 billion in 2023 to €42 billion in the space of five years.
