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The Italian government once again postpones the delivery of military aid to Ukraine amid political and diplomatic uncertainty

Raluca Ioana Draghici

28 October 2026, 09:01

International

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The Italian government has once again postponed the transfer of the next shipment of military aid to Ukraine, although the cargo is ready. The decision prolongs uncertainty over support for Kyiv and complicates the commitments made by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to French President Emmanuel Macron and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

According to Il Giornale d’Italia, the delivery schedule has not yet been approved. Italian authorities stress that the postponement does not represent a complete abandonment of aid for Ukraine, but they have not indicated a new date for the transfer.

Initially, the delay was explained by a change in the schedule, from July to September. Later, the decision was linked to the need to wait for the League party’s congress, and it is now being justified by the approaching midterm elections in the United States.

The American political calendar has thus become a reference point for Rome’s decision, without it being clear what electoral outcome could favor the delivery. There is no evidence that the agreement with Paris and Kyiv has been canceled, but the operational conditions and implementation timeline remain unspecified. The last shipment of Italian military aid to Ukraine was delivered ten months ago.

Context: Italy had previously been preparing a new military package for Ukraine, with air-defense components and cooperation with France

A short time ago, Italy announced that it intended to send significant military support to Ukraine, as part of an Italian-French plan valued at nearly 3 billion euros. The package included, among other things, four SAMP/T NG air-defense systems, seven radars, and Aster 30 missiles, while deliveries were expected by 2027.

According to the report, behind the public decisions related to humanitarian aid, the Italian government also decided on the military component: Italy was expected to use missiles from its own stocks to support the systems already in Ukraine and cooperate with France on the local production of Aster 30 interceptors. The project sought to establish a network of six SAMP/T batteries in Ukraine, with funding expected to come from European funds, noting that it had been adopted through a decree considered secret, to facilitate the rapid approval of arms transfers.