By David Scott
The Italian Navy deployed in power to the Indo-Pacific within the second half of 2024, sending a Service Strike Group comprised of the plane provider ITS Cavour and frigate ITS Alpino, together with the unbiased deployments of ITS Raimondo Montecuccoli and ITS Amerigo Vespucci. These deployments, which represented varied firsts for Italy, underpin, underscore, and operationalize the Meloni administration’s pursuit of latest strategic horizons far past the Mediterranean Sea.
Strategic Context
Italian maritime doctrine is more and more trying past its conventional concentrate on the Mediterranean. Admiral Giorgi’s signaled this shift in 2017 with the “Mediterraneo allargato,” echoed by Talbot and Fruganti’s “wider” and Zampieri and Ghermandi’s “enlarged,” Mediterranean, a maritime house reaching down the Purple Sea into the Indian Ocean. Bartoli wrote of an “Indo-Mediterranean;” Droin and Rossi framed the dialog within the strategic phrases of a “Mediterranean-Indo-Pacific continuum.”
The administration of Giorgia Meloni, in energy since October 2022, has operationalized such an Italian outreach to the Indo-Pacific. Prime Minister Meloni was clear on this throughout her summit journey to India in March 2023:
“Ours is a strategic selection as a result of, [….] after we discuss in regards to the ‘wider Mediterranean’ we should think about that it extends all the way in which to right here [India]. The Mediterranean Sea and the Indo-Pacific are interconnected, and we need to strengthen that interconnection an increasing number of.”
Notably important cooperation throughout the Indo-Pacific is obvious for Italy with the U.S., India, Japan, and Australia. Meloni’s personal state visits to India and Japan throughout 2023 have been consequential. The Meloni administration’s withdrawal from China’s Belt and Street (BRI) initiative in March 2024 and fast pivot to the India-Mediterranean Financial Hall (IMEC) initiative in September 2024 was a telling reorientation.
Italy has particularly targeted on India because it expands operations within the Indo-Pacific. On the finish of Meloni’s go to in March 2023, the India-Italy Joint Assertion emphasised “the significance of a free, open and rules-based Indo-Pacific,” “freedom of navigation,” and “collaboration in making certain maritime safety.” This assertion was partly aimed toward piracy and jihadist disruption within the Indian Ocean, but in addition at China. Italy agreed to take joint lead within the Science, Know-how, and Tutorial Cooperation pillar of the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative (IPOI) launched by India. At Meloni’s assembly with Narendra Modi in June 2024, the Indian aspect particularly famous and welcomed the scheduled forthcoming visits of the Cavour plane provider and the Vespucci to India.
With regard to Japan, Meloni met Japan’s then-leader Fumio Kishida a number of instances throughout 2023. Meloni’s first assembly with Kishida in January 2023 recorded rising “cooperation within the Indo-Pacific” by which it was determined to raise bilateral relations to the Strategic Partnership standing, and to launch a bilateral Overseas Affairs-Protection session mechanism. Her summit assembly in Could 2023 recorded they might “proceed to coordinate carefully in addressing points regarding China.”
Italy additionally reached out to Australia throughout 2023. In January 2023, Maria Tripodi, the Undersecretary of State for Overseas Affairs and Worldwide Cooperation, advised her Australian counterpart that Italy appeared on Australia as “a associate and key participant within the Indo-Pacific area, one of many foremost protectors of the rule of regulation, freedom of navigation [and sustainable infrastructural development.” Italy’s other Undersecretary of State, Giogio Sill’s “elaborate” mission to Australia in November 2023, focused on the “geostrategic balance in the Indo-Pacific.”
Last but not least, in a similar China-concerned vein, the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Secretary General Riccardo Guarilga co-chaired the United States-Italy Consultation on the Indo-Pacific meeting on May 21, 2024, in Washington.
Given that the Indo-Pacific is primarily a maritime area, linked by the disputed South China Seas, it is no surprise that Italy’s involvement has been heavily maritime-focused, and practically implemented in its naval deployments in 2023 and in greater strength in 2024.
2023 Naval Deployment: Francesco Morosini
An immediate manifestation of the Meloni administration’s embrace of the Indo-Pacific was the dispatch of the Francesco Morosini across the Indo-Pacific during 2023. The Morosini was a new Paolo Thaon di Revel-class multipurpose PPA Offshore Patrol Vessel. In reality, the Morosini is more akin to a frigate – armed as it is with a lightweight torpedo system and three helicopters.
This was a five-month deployment from May to September 2023. The Morisini’s deployment beyond the Suez Canal took her down the Red Sea, across the Indian Ocean, and the South China Sea and East China Sea to Japan. Enrico Credendino, the Italian Navy Chief of Staff characterized the area as one in which “our Navy has been missing for several years, a world that we know little about, but in which there is a strong strategic, military, diplomatic and political interest.”
No contacts were made with China throughout its mission, instead a range of China-concerned countries were visited. China’s Global Times criticized the tour as “a mission aimed at developing synergies and training experiences with the Quad.”
The Morisini first called in Djibouti, before steaming in the Gulf of Aden and participating in the anti-piracy Operation Atalanta (operating since 2008), followed by the Straits of Hormuz and Persian Gulf for Operation Agenor. However, what was new was that the Morisini then steamed eastwards across the India Ocean.
In Southeast Asia, the Morisini participated in Singapore’s leading defense exhibition IMDEX 2023 from May 3–5 and the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition (LIMA) in Malaysia from May 23–27. It also joined the multilateral Komodo 2023 exercise hosted by the Indonesian Navy. The Morisini’s visit was also the lever for Italian sales of such PPA multipurpose patrol vessels to Indonesia, “amid China fears” shared by both countries. The Italian Embassy in Hanoi welcomed the Morosini’s port call in May 2023 with a clear and unambiguous message on the Morisini’s mission:
“The Morosini visit takes place in the framework of a five-month naval campaign in the Indo-Pacific region [….] to advertise naval diplomacy and maritime capability constructing alongside with freedom of navigation and respect for the worldwide regulation of the ocean.”
The difficulty of freedom of navigation and respect for worldwide regulation of the ocean was aimed toward China within the South China Sea. Crossing the South China Sea, in itself a tacit freedom of navigation traverse, the Morisini then exercised with the Japanese Navy (JS Hamana) within the East China Sea. Busan in South Korea and Yokosuka have been the furthest limits of Morisini’s deployment.
Coming back from Japan, the Morisini visited Manila, Jakarta, Chittagong, Mumbai and Karachi. In the course of the keep at Manila, Rear Admiral Fabio Gregori, commander of the Italian Navy Fleet, toured the ship, expressing Rome’s curiosity in strengthening naval cooperation with Manila within the Indo-Pacific area on the whole and the South China Sea particularly. A PASSEX was carried out with the Philippine Navy.
At Mumbai, the Morisini’s commanding officer Giovanni Monno addressed the Italy-India Maritime Safety Seminar organized by the Italian Embassy and the Nationwide Maritime Basis. As a panelist, Rear Admiral Giuseppe Schiwardi, Director of the Strategic Research Centre at Italy’s Naval Workers Faculty, argued in his paper Connecting Italy’s Mediterranean and India’s Ocean:
“Italy and India have nationwide and customary pursuits to guard, and Italy is a dependable associate. The Indian Ocean is contiguous and inescapably linked to Italy’s “Wider Mediterranean” [Mediterraneo Allargato].
The momentum of this one-ship 2023 deployment was maintained and deepened with the extra highly effective four-ship deployments throughout 2024, transferring naval diplomacy and exercising to the fore.
2024 Naval Deployments
The noticeable characteristic in 2024 has been the a number of deployments by Italy: not solely comfortable energy within the form of the Amerigo Vespucci but in addition laborious energy within the form of the Raimondo Montecuccoli, and above all, the Service Strike Group (CSG) made up of the Cavour plane provider and supporting Alpino frigate. These three elements at varied instances crossed one another’s paths. The Vespucci and the Montecuccoli sailed collectively from Los Angeles to Honolulu, whereas the Montecuccoli joined the CSG at varied factors within the Western Pacific, South China Sea, and Gulf of Aden. In distinction to the deployment of the Morisini in 2023, each the Montecuccoli and the CSG participated in a variety of high-end workout routines with allies and companions having related considerations about China. Italian protection expertise was additionally on present because the Italian Protection Industries Discussion board placed on three exhibitions, fielded by Vice Admiral Guiseppe Abbamonte Director of the Italian Naval Armaments Directorate; at Yokosuka on board the Cavour plane provider, at Manila on board the Alpino, and at Jakarta on board the Montecuccoli.
Amerigo Vespucci
The Vespucci is the Italian navy’s oldest vessel, in-built 1931 as a swish tall ship, a full-rigged three-masted crusing ship with auxiliary diesel engine propulsion. It transited the Beagle Channel and Cape Horn in April 2024, and the Purple Sea in January 2025, the primary time in 20 years that the Vespucci, “the world’s most stunning ship” (Gurioli), had left Italian waters. Its itinerary took it east to west throughout the Indo-Pacific.
Port calls have been organized for Valparaiso (April 28–Could 2), Callao (Could 12–15), Guayaquil (Could 21–24), Balboa (Could 31–June 2), Acapulco (June 15–18), Puerto Vallarta (June 19–23 ), Los Angeles (July 3–8), Honolulu (July 24–28), Yokosuka (August 22), Tokyo (August 25–30), Manila (September 14–18), Darwin (October 4–7), Jakarta (October 20–24), Singapore (October 24–28), Phuket (November 6–10), Mumbai (November 24–28), Karachi (December 3–6), and Oman (January 8–15).
Such port calls have been supplemented by Italian Villages arrange (the one in Los Angeles by the Protection Minister), and excursions and conferences held on board. On board the Vespucci, the Italian ambassador to Japan Gianluigi Benedetti defined its go to as:
“An indication that has a wider worth, multilateral if you’ll, a world strategic worth. Italy’s affirmation to need to contribute to peace and stability on the earth, making certain the coordination in cooperation with different companions and nations of varied areas, maritime security and safety and freedom of navigation, additionally within the Indo-Pacific.”
Italy’s Navy Chief of Workers Enrico Credendino attended the cease in Singapore, in addition to Undersecretary of Protection Matteo Perego di Cremnago. Credendino reappeared for the cease in Oman, commenting in discussions with Omani counterparts that “it’s important to maintain the maritime strains of communication open” and noting the “nice consideration for the arrival of the Amerigo Vespucci ship.”
Raimondo Montecuccoli
Formally termed an Operational Projection Capaign (OPC) by the Marina Militare, the Montecuccoli, the third Thaon di Revel patrol boat, and the primary with anti-air warfare capabilities (PPA Mild Plus configuration), entered the Pacific by the Panama Canal on Could 26. Stopping at Manzanillo from June 5–8 and San Diego from June 12–16, just like the Vespucci, the Montecuccoli then took an east-west path throughout the Indo-Pacific. Pleasant port calls have been interspersed with laborious energy navy exercising with China-concerned allies and companions, with the Italian Service Strike Group (CSG) joined at varied factors.
In such a tough energy vein, from June 27 June to August 1, the Montecuccoli participated within the first at-sea section of Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) train; earlier than becoming a member of in Pacific Dragon ballistic missile protection train from July 29 to August 13, within the waters across the Hawaiian Islands. This was alongside different naval models from Australia (HMAS Sydney), Japan (JS Haguro), South Korea (ROKS Yulgok Yi I) the Netherlands (HNLMS Tromp), and the U.S. (USS Carl M. Levin, USS Kidd and USS Shiloh). Notably, Italy’s participation in every main train was a primary.
The Montecuccoli subsequent went to Japan. From August 27–29 it participated, alongside the Italian CSG, within the Noble Raven train organized by the Japanese Navy. Its arrival at Okinawa on August 31 drew the feedback from the Italian consul Marco Prencipe:
“The presence right this moment of the Offshore Patrol Vessel Montecuccoli is a concrete manifestation of Italy’s capability to undertaking – even on this area that’s so strategic for the world’s geopolitical and geo-economic balances – to put money into sectors with very excessive technological content material such because the naval trade, and is added to that of the crusing ship Vespucci [Tokyo], the ship Cavour, and the Alpino [at Yokosuka, as] an articulate presence of the Italian Navy.”
In one other first for Italy, the Montecuccoli carried out patrols monitoring sanctions in opposition to North Korea within the waters round Japan from late August to early September 2024, and paid a three-day port name in South Korea at Busan from September 4–6.
Subsequent the Montecuccoli joined the Italian CSG in 4 days exercising from September 9–12 with the U.S. Navy (USS Russell) and Australian Air Drive (Poseidon Maritime Patrol Plane) within the South China Sea. Pleasant port calls have been then made at Jakarta (14-17 September, with the CSG), Laem Chabang (23-27 September), Port Klang (2-4 October) and Colombo (10-13 October).
By October 18 the Montecuccoli had rejoined the Italian CSG to conduct workout routines with the US Abraham Lincoln CSG within the Gulf of Aden, echoing their related exercising collectively in August. Nonetheless with the Italian CSG, it returned up the Purple Sea in late-October
Service Strike Group
The importance of this deployment was its energy, Italy’s Service Strike Group (CSG), made up by the plane provider Cavour and the Alpino frigate. The Cavour plane provider, with 30,000 tons full load displacement, operates superior F-35B warplanes, enabling interoperability with the Japanese and U.S. navies. The CSG’s itinerary was the Purple Sea-Salalah-Singapore-Darwin & Coonawarra-Guam-Yakosuka-Manila-Jakarta-Singapore-Goa-Karachi-Purple Sea. China featured nowhere as a port of name. Its exercising was pointed in bilateral, trilateral and quadrilateral codecs.
Italian exercising with the U.S. throughout the Indo-Pacific was intensive. Having exercised on June 7 with the Dwight D. Eisenhower CSG, the Italian CSG (accompanied by FS Forbin) entered the Indo-Pacific and additional bilateral exercising with the U.S.:
June 28: South China Sea, train with the united statesMobile CSG
August 9: Philippine Sea, train with the Abraham Lincoln CSG
September 12: South China Sea, train with USS Russell
October 18: Gulf of Aden, train with the Abraham Lincoln CSG
The very fact that there have been three separate plane provider (Multi-Giant Deck Occasion, MLDE) workout routines carried out between the Italian and U.S. CSGs was a robust indicator. The 2 Italy-U.S. bilateral workout routines within the South China Sea have been a really direct sign to China.
Italian bilateral provider exercising with Japan was additionally on present. Mixed F-35B operations and landings between their respective plane carriers have been carried out at Yokosuka naval base from August 22–27.
CSG workout routines have been additionally carried out with India. Within the waters off Goa, the Cavour and Alpino exercised with India’s personal CSG (plane provider INS Vikramaditya and the destroyer INS Visakhapatnam) from 1-6 October. The exercising included air fight missions and coordinated weapons firings.
Wider China-concerned codecs have been additionally pursued by the Italian CSG. July 2024 witnessed one other first time occasion, Italian participation within the prolonged Pitch Black plane workout routines in Australia, courtesy of the Cavour’s F-35Bs. This was alongside plane and personnel from Australia, Brunei, Canada, Fiji, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, South Korea, Singapore, Spain, Thailand, the U.Ok., and the U.S.. China was not invited. The Italian Admiralty judged that Black Pitch:
“Highlighted the relevance of the presence of the Italian Protection Drive within the Indo-Pacific, essential within the international geopolitical context, and the significance of complicated and difficult workout routines, checks of logistical projection functionality at nice distance and interplay with Allied International locations.”
The Italian CSG and the Montecuccoli was additionally concerned within the Noble Raven train from August 27–29, organized by the Japanese Navy in waters off Japan, and Italy’s first ever involvement. This was one thing of a naval “formation foxtrot” with Japan’s helicopter provider JS Izumo, the destroyer JS Onami, submarine and P-1 maritime patrol plane, France’s frigate Bretagne, Germany’s frigate FGS Baden-Württemberg and fleet oiler FGS Berlin and Australia’s destroyer HMAS Sydney. The embarked Japanese personnel additionally stayed on the Cavour till Manila, permitting them to additional observe F-35B flight operations on board the Italian provider.
The Cavour CSG, nonetheless joined by the French Frigate Bretagne, and once more joined by the Montecuccoli, practiced 4 days of fixed-wing air protection and anti-submarine workout routines within the South China Sea from 8-11 September with the U.S. Navy (USS Russell guided-missile destroyer) and Australian Air Drive (Poseidon Maritime Patrol Plane).
Influence
Within the wake of Black Pitch and the numerous workout routines in Japan, Enrico Credendino the Chief of the Italian Navy was happy to announce on August 28 at Yokosuka, on board Italy’s plane provider, that Preliminary Operational Capability (IOC) for its F-35B part had been achieved:
With the IOC (achievement), the maritime part of Italy’s Protection takes a big step ahead in expressing the flexibility to undertaking forces from the ocean even in operational theatres removed from the same old gravitational basins, for prolonged durations of time, pursuing full interoperability and interchangeability in joint operations with allies and companions: one of many foremost targets of the Service Strike Group marketing campaign within the Indo-Pacific.
The impression of the Italian deployments in 2024 is three-fold. Firstly, Italy’s profile is undeniably larger all through the Indo-Pacific, as a helpful technological associate for smaller-medium dimension Asian states like Indonesia, and a helpful safety associate for India and Japan. Secondly, Italy has labored alongside the U.S. throughout the Indo-Pacific.
As well as, an implicit message has been despatched to China. Beijing could certainly have shunned overt official criticism of Italian naval deployments in 2024, however this was most likely calculated public diplomacy for Meloni’s go to to China in July. However, by September the Chinese language state media (World Instances) had labeled the presence of the Cavour in Japan as a part of a NATO “menace” to China. A Nationwide Curiosity headline in October “China is freaked: Italy’s flagship plane provider is coaching with India” was blunt however correct. A message had certainly been delivered by Rome. An Indo-Pacific maritime presence has been established.
Certainly, even because the Amerigo Vespucci docked at Jeddah on 25 January, to be welcomed by Prime Minister Meloni, Italy’s Indo-Pacifico 2025 was already underway with the dispatch of the frigate ITS Antonia Marceglia which left Italy on January 20 for a six month “Projection Marketing campaign.” Admiral Aurelio de Carolis “emphasised” that the missions aligned with EU and NATO “methods to counterbalance China.” On its means throughout the Indian Ocean to Japan, 12 nations are being visited by the Antonia Marceglia, with China absent from the checklist. The vessel participated within the Indonesian-hosted Komodo 2025 workout routines from 15-22 February, and was additionally set to work together with French and, of significance for the Trump administration, U.S. plane provider teams within the area.
Dr. David Scott is an affiliate member of the Corbett Centre for Maritime Coverage Research. A prolific author on Indo-Pacific maritime geopolitics, he may be contacted at [email protected]
Featured Picture: The IT CSG with Cavour provider as flagship of the EUMARFOR floor power. (EUROMARFOR picture)
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