Local and EU legislators have warned that the Italian government’s acceptance of Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite communication system would be a “political and economic mistake.” This criticism emerged after the government insisted on its decision and Musk entered the discussions.

If the agreement is signed, Italy will become the first EU country to officially establish a relationship with SpaceX. However, this raises questions about the country’s alignment with Europe’s strategic priorities, including the deployment of the EU’s Starlink-like “IRIS2” system.

The communications deal has now become a talking point in Italian politics. MPs such as Antonio Nicita of the Democratic Party told Euractiv that the deal is politically rather than economically motivated. According to Nicita, Musk may be trying to outdo the IRIS2 system by securing a large EU member state as a customer, which could jeopardize its financial sustainability.

IRIS2, a multi-orbit satellite internet constellation, aims to gradually provide secure connectivity from 2025 to 2030 and reduce dependence on non-European systems. According to the Italian MEP, the Italian government’s deal with Starlink raises antitrust concerns, as an exclusive contract between the Italian government and Starlink could lead to market seizure or blocking.

What about Europe’s own satellite communications system, IRIS2?

According to Bloomberg, the five-year deal will cost €1.5 billion. However, Italy is already a financier and future customer of the EU’s IRIS2 program, which is 12 years old and costs all 27 EU member states €10.6 billion. Nicita warned that the entire IRIS2 program would become less reliable and economically viable if a dominant competitor locked up most of the demand by signing medium-term contracts with other EU governments.

MEP and former IRIS2 rapporteur Christophe Grudler told Euractiv that a deal with Italy would be a “strategic mistake,” with Italian taxpayers paying twice for two systems. Grudler also noted that from 2025, the EU’s GovSatCom program will provide most of the services Italy is trying to access through the Starlink deal. He warned that Musk’s venture would displace Italian industry and cost jobs, sovereignty, and strategic autonomy.

Salvini’s support for the deal and Musk

On the other hand, Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Lega leader Matteo Salvini wrote on X that the deal is an opportunity, not a risk. Salvini argued that access to Starlink services would modernize Italy by providing secure and reliable connectivity across the country. He described the SpaceX CEO as “one of the leading figures in global innovation.”

Musk responded to Salvini, calling the prospect “fantastic” and saying he thought other European countries would follow in Italy’s footsteps. A European Commission spokesperson said on 7 January that Italy, as a sovereign state, has full discretion to pursue its sovereign decisions and actions, explaining that access to SpaceX services is compatible with the IRIS2 project. The spokesperson added that Italy’s participation in IRIS2 also means that the upcoming constellation is expected to host three control centers.

Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen has tasked Herbert Kickl, leader of the right-wing Austrian Freedom Party (FPÖ), with forming a new government.

Following the collapse of coalition talks and the unexpected resignation of Chancellor Karl Nehammer over the weekend, Van der Bellen announced on Monday that he had instructed Kickl to initiate coalition negotiations with the ‘centre-right’ Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP).

If the negotiations succeed, the FPÖ will lead an Austrian government for the first time in the country’s history.

The resignation of Nehammer, who had resisted granting the FPÖ the mandate to form a government after its victory in the September general election, compelled the president to set aside his opposition to Kickl and his party.

President Van der Bellen stated, “The government must be solid; it must have a reliable majority. I may have some desires about the formation, but I have to respect the result of the vote.”

Under Austria’s multi-party system, the FPÖ requires a 50+1 per cent majority to form a government. This necessitates forming a coalition with at least one other party to secure a vote of confidence.

The FPÖ clinched victory in September’s election with 29 per cent of the vote, marking the start of what the party termed a “new era” for Austria. While the FPÖ has served as a junior partner in past coalitions, this marks the first time it has won a general election and potentially the chancellorship.

On Saturday, Nehammer resigned after the ÖVP failed to reach an agreement with the Social Democrats, and talks collapsed following the withdrawal of the liberal NEOS from negotiations. This opened the door for Kickl to receive the mandate to form a government.

During the election campaign, Nehammer ruled out a coalition with Kickl but left the door open to working with the FPÖ if Kickl were excluded from leadership discussions.

Christian Stocker, who became the interim leader of the ÖVP following Nehammer’s resignation, indicated that his party was willing to engage in talks, stating, “Our party is ready to participate if the FPÖ extends an invitation for coalition negotiations.”

Despite some shared views on asylum and immigration policy, significant disagreements remain between the two parties. Key differences include their stances on support for Ukraine and the European Union. While the ÖVP is pro-Ukraine and pro-EU, the FPÖ takes a sceptical approach to both issues.

Political uncertainty has begun in Austria after the surprise resignation of Chancellor Karl Nehammer at the weekend. This step is thought to lead to the right-wing Austrian Freedom Party (FPÖ) taking control of the government for the first time.

Nehammer, a former military officer who became chancellor in 2021 after a political scandal forced Sebastian Kurz to resign, announced he would step down as leader of both the country and the centre-right Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP).

In a short video statement late on Saturday, he said his resignation as chancellor would take effect in the coming days and promised an “orderly transition.”

This decision, which comes after talks to form a tripartite centrist coalition collapsed on Friday, opens the door for the ÖVP to resume coalition talks with the FPÖ. Nehammer had opposed a coalition with the FPÖ, citing the “extremism” of its leader, Herbert Kickl.

However, this view was not shared by everyone in the ÖVP. The party’s business wing, in particular, wants the next government to introduce more aggressive reforms to stimulate the economy, which is in its second year of recession.

ÖVP officials signaled on Sunday that the party was ready for talks with the FPÖ, which won Austria’s general election in September with 29% of the vote.

After the other four parties represented in parliament refused to negotiate with the FPÖ, the FPÖ’s victory was seen as a Pyrrhic victory until Sunday.

“We are not responsible for the lost time, the chaos, and the enormous loss of trust that has been created here,” Kickl said late on Sunday. “On the contrary, it is clear that the FPÖ has been and continues to be the only stable factor in Austria’s domestic politics,” he added.

A coalition between the FPÖ and the ÖVP, which finished second in the September elections with 26% of the vote, would have a large majority in parliament.

The only question now is whether Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen, who has the power to reject chancellor candidates, will accept Kickl as chancellor.

Theoretically, the FPÖ could field a less controversial candidate, but Kickl has made it clear that he wants the job.

If the FPÖ and the ÖVP agree to form a government and appoint Kickl as chancellor, Van der Bellen can use his veto, but this would plunge the country into a constitutional crisis.

Such an outcome would probably only increase the popularity of the FPÖ. In the latest opinion polls, the party is polling at 37%, which means that if Van der Bellen calls for a new election, the FPÖ would be even stronger.

In November, the party won an important regional election in Styria with 35% of the vote and took control of the province for the first time.

Van der Bellen is therefore more likely to take this in stride. He acknowledged this in a statement on Sunday and said he had planned a meeting with Kickl for Monday “to discuss the new situation.”

Kickl, who campaigned on the promise of becoming Volkskanzler (People’s Chancellor) and turning Austria into a “fortress” against immigration, is known for his harsh comments about foreigners and Islam.

As interior minister in 2018, for example, the FPÖ leader proposed the idea of “rounding up” refugees in special centers and ordered the refugee registration centers to be renamed “removal centers.”

Van der Bellen, former leader of the Austrian Green Party, has made no secret of his displeasure with Kickl and his party, which has sharply criticized the EU and even flirted with taking Austria out of the bloc.

After the elections in September, the President of the Republic broke with tradition and chose not to give Kickl, the leader of the strongest party, the task of forming a coalition.

The rise of the FPÖ, founded in the 1950s by a group of former Nazis who seem to have not given up on their ideas, will be the culmination of decades of evolution.

The party first came to international attention in the 1990s under Jörg Haider, who used the issue of immigration from the former Yugoslavia to mobilize voters and challenge the mainstream. By 1999, Haider had built up a strong following that propelled his party to second place in the national elections.

The FPÖ continued to enter coalitions as a junior partner of the ÖVP. The centre-right’s decision to link arms with the FPÖ was so controversial at the time that it led other members of the EU to impose “diplomatic sanctions” on Vienna. This was a symbolic gesture, which in practice meant a halt to bilateral visits.

An FPÖ-led government would be a turning point for Austria, a country whose national politics has been dominated by “centre” parties since the Second World War.

The second FPÖ-ÖVP coalition, formed in 2017 under the leadership of Sebastian Kurz, collapsed dramatically after the “Ibiza affair.”

The government collapsed 18 months after the publication of a secretly filmed video showing then FPÖ leader and Vice Chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache trying to do political favors for money to a woman he believed to be the niece of a Russian oligarch.

The footage, several hours long, was shot at a private villa on the island of Ibiza, where Strache was holidaying in the months before taking office.

The investigations that have been ongoing since then have preoccupied the Austrian justice system and played a central role in Kurz’s departure from office.

It remains to be seen whether former Chancellor Kurz will return to Austrian politics after his dramatic fall from grace.

Last February, an Austrian court found Kurz guilty of making false statements to a parliamentary commission of inquiry.

Judge Michael Radasztics gave the 37-year-old Kurz an eight-month suspended prison sentence for the serious offense of deceiving parliament under oath during the 2020 investigation into his government.

Since his resignation as chancellor, Kurz has been a consultant for Silicon Valley investor and Palantir founder Peter Thiel.

Kurz also founded a cybersecurity firm in Israel together with Shalev Hulio, co-founder of the company behind the Pegasus spyware.

On the other hand, according to Paul Ronzheimer, deputy editor-in-chief of Bild and Kurz’s biographer, Kurz does not want to return to the party, despite rumors that the ÖVP has made him an offer.