Italy could drop plans to tap the European Union’s SAFE financing scheme on defence without more lenient budget rules on energy-related spending, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said in a letter to EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The Security Action for Europe (SAFE) instrument is a joint borrowing scheme backed by the EU budget to boost the bloc’s defence capabilities and help member states meet more ambitious NATO spending targets.
In a diplomatic escalation with the EU, Meloni stepped up her calls for the Commission to grant member states the same budget leeway to ease surging energy costs as is currently allowed for defence spending.
“Italy considers it necessary to temporarily extend the scope of the National Escape Clause (from budget rules), which already applies to defence spending, to include investments and extraordinary measures needed to address the ongoing energy crisis,” Meloni wrote in a letter sent late on Sunday and seen by Reuters.
“Without this necessary political consistency, it would be very difficult for the Italian government to explain to the public why it might resort to the SAFE programme.”
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