Italy has approved a €13.5 billion bridge project to connect the island of Sicily with the mainland, giving the green light to the long-delayed initiative after Giorgia Meloni’s government redefined it as a national security priority.
The world’s longest suspension bridge will be “an accelerator for development,” Transport Minister Matteo Salvini told reporters on Wednesday, after the committee in charge of large-scale public works gave its approval, News.Az reports ciitng foreign media.
The idea of connecting Sicily to the mainland with a crossing over the Messina Strait has been chewed over in Rome for more than 50 years. It is finally moving forward as part of a push to invest more in national security — Salvini and other Italian officials have said they want the project to be part of a Nato increase in defence spending.
“It’s evident there would be a dual use if necessary,” Salvini said in Rome. “There can be that [military] use if necessary, God forbid.”
Prime Minister Meloni’s government has said expenditure on the bridge will be part of its commitment to raise overall defence spending to 5% of GDP as part of its membership of Nato. Italy’s current defence expenditure is below 2%.
While 3.5% of GDP must be used in core areas like troops and weapons, the rest can be directed to broader security investments.
The project, now scheduled for completion between 2032 and 2033, had originally been seen as a way to boost economic growth by helping to connect up Italy’s poorer southern regions. Eurolink, a general contractor led by Webuild SpA, signed a contract for the bridge worth €10.6 billion on Wednesday.
The bridge will create road and rail links to the island and span over 3.6km. Preparation work on the project was halted during the European debt crisis in the early 2010s and revived after Meloni became premier three years ago. Italy first called for a design contest to build a bridge in 1969, but the idea goes back to ancient times.
Nato members pledged to raise defence expenditure to the 5% target earlier this year in a bid to keep the US committed to the alliance. Up to 1.5% of GDP can be used for infrastructure projects that help to support military logistics.
The Italian government has argued that the bridge will help to move troops around quickly. Sicily hosts several key military bases, including some used by Nato.
Previous attempts to finalise the project and begin construction have been marred by concerns around ballooning costs, seismic risk, and the involvement of organised crime.
