According to a source, Italy is poised to provide Ukraine a second air defense system

According to a source with knowledge of the situation who spoke to Reuters on Monday, Italy is planning to transfer a second SAMP/T air defense system to Ukraine in response to Kyiv’s requests for more assistance in thwarting Russian missile attacks.

This Franco-Italian battery system, also called MAMBA, is capable of tracking up to dozens of targets and simultaneously intercepting ten of them. It is the only ballistic missile intercepting system built in Europe.

Rome and Paris worked together to deliver the first system in 2023, but as attacks on towns and energy facilities have increased, Ukraine has been pleading with its allies for greater air defense assistance in recent months.

The unnamed source affirmed press rumors that Italy was getting ready to send a SAMP/T system that is now deployed in Kuwait but is scheduled to return to Italy shortly.

He did not, however, specify when any deliveries would be made.

Italy has given the government of President Volodymyr Zelenskiy approval for eight help packages since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. According to the source, the air defense system is probably included in a ninth package that could be approved soon.

The government has never disclosed the precise inventory of weaponry it has shipped to Ukraine, and all of the transfers are shrouded in official secrecy.

The newspaper Corriere della Sera stated on Monday that following Italy’s June 13–15 hosting of a summit of the leaders of the Group of Seven major democracies, the government might approve the fresh shipments.

At an April meeting Italy sponsored on the island of Capri, the G7 foreign ministers vowed to support Ukraine’s air defense efforts further, stating that they were dedicated to preserving vital infrastructure and protecting lives.