Italy announced on Thursday plans to develop a multi-layered air defense system that works similarly to Israel’s fully operational Iron Dome.
The state-controlled defense and aerospace multinational company Leonardo S.p.A. named it “Michelangelo Dome,” aimed to detect, track, intercept and neutralize incoming air threats such as rockets, missiles and drones, according to Reuters.
“This is a model that is important for security in Italy, Europe and NATO countries in the coming years,” Leonardo Chief Executive Roberto Cingolani said when presenting the plans in Rome, the report added.
The move comes on the backdrop of European nations bolstering their defenses amid the threat from Russia and elsewhere. The Michelangelo Dome is expected to protect key sites of national interest, Reuters reported.
The air defense array is slated for operational use from 2028, the Leonardo firm stated.
Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto recently called for solutions to combat hybrid warfare threats, particularly for energy infrastructure and airports.
“Each country can integrate its own technologies. Together, we can cooperate to create a highly advanced defense system against all types of threats, from hypersonic missiles to small drones, because threats now come in many different forms,” Crosetto was cited as saying in Paris after a meeting with his French counterpart, Catherine Vautrin.
Turkey’s Steel Dome
On Wednesday, the Turkish Defense Industries Presidency (SSB) announced $6.5 billion worth of contracts to boost its multi-layered Steel Dome air defense system, Reuters reported.
The project is composed of “47 components, including radars, missiles, electro-optical sensors, command and control centers, and air defense elements with different ranges,” the report noted.
SSB Chairman Haluk Gorgun said the contracts included combat systems and their advanced versions, which would be developed by local defense contractor Roketsan.
The chairmen of defense firms Aselsan and Roketsan said the contracts were of “strategic importance,” and added they included space and air defense systems, anti-tank systems, and other strategic systems, according to Reuters.
Turkey, a NATO member, has transitioned much of its military industry to domestic production, to reduce reliance on external suppliers.
It first declared plans to build an air defense system in July 2024. But officials and analysts have said that the project is years away from materialization, the report added.
Turkey in recent years has become a leading manufacturer and exporter of armed drones, sold and used in conflicts in Ukraine, Syria, Nagorno-Karabakh and across Africa.
On Tuesday, Reuters reported that the U.S. Space Force recently signed approximately six small-scale Golden Dome contracts with competing missile-defense prototypes, sparking a race that could lead to tens of billions of dollars in future deals.
The contractors included Northrop Grumman, True Anomaly, Lockheed Martin and Anduril.
In May, U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled plans to spend $175 billion on the American missile-defense system dubbed “Golden Dome,” saying it will emulate and expand on the success of Israel’s Iron Dome.
The design “will integrate with our existing defense capabilities and should be fully operational before the end of my term,” Trump announced from the Oval Office.
