Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to improve (a) military and (b) other defence cooperation with Italy.

Through regular meetings between our Defence Secretaries, our bilateral High-Level Military Dialogue, and interaction through other groupings such as NATO and E5 Defence Ministers Group, we continuously explore how the UK and Italy can better work together to address issues of shared strategic interest.

In recent years, the relationship has been consolidated by our commitment to the Global Combat Air Programme alongside Japan which achieved Treaty Ratification in December 2024. Additionally, in February 2025, we signed the Statement of Intent for Capabilities and Complex Weapons which will enable deeper collaboration on defence exports and industry. Operationally, only two European nations with carrier-capable F-35B aircraft, we continue to deepen interoperability between our Carrier Strike Groups. This was clear to see during Ex MED STRIKE which took place during the UK Carrier Strike Group's transit of the Mediterranean earlier this year. During this exercise, the UK's Carrier Strike Group combined with the Italian Carrier Strike Group, conducting essential training together including on anti-submarine warfare and air defence tactics.