In recent years, the redefinition of global balances has made it clear how maritime power has returned to the centre of competition between states. The attacks on the Red Sea routes, the growing Russian and Chinese presence in Africa and the chronic instability of the enlarged Mediterranean area have shown how vulnerable the freedom of maritime traffic – through which approximately 40% of Italian import-export passes – is and how Italy, despite having one of the most modern navies in Europe, does not yet have the necessary tools to permanently project its power beyond the radius of its own bases.

In this context, the hypothesis – still informal but strategically relevant – of an Italian nuclear-powered aircraft carrier takes on a significance that goes far beyond the technical or industrial dimension: it would represent a paradigm shift in the country’s geopolitical posture.

The current limits of conventional power

Today, the Italian Navy operates two main capital ships — Cavour and Trieste — which provide a solid yet regionally confined power-projection capability. Both are technologically advanced, but their conventional propulsion systemsimpose considerable logistical constraints. With an average endurance of around 7,000 nautical miles, these vessels require refueling after only a few weeks of continuous deployment.

In operational theatres such as the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Guinea, or the Pacific — increasingly relevant to Italy’s trade and energy security — this dependence limits mission persistence and necessitates cooperation with allied supply bases.

By contrast, nuclear propulsion would free the fleet from this dependence. France’s Charles de Gaulle, the only nuclear-powered aircraft carrier in Europe, demonstrates this advantage: its K15 reactors grant over ten years of energy autonomy before refueling, and a total operational lifespan exceeding forty years. The U.S. Navy’s Ford and Nimitzclasses go even further, with reactor cores designed to last up to twenty-five years without refueling. The strategic implications are evident: a nuclear-powered carrier can operate at sea for months, with higher speed, range, and readiness, maintaining a combat air wing available anywhere in the world.

Geopolitical implications: from regional actor to global reach

Such a capability would radically change Italy’s geopolitical profile. To date, our defence policy has been built on a predominantly Mediterranean logic: missions in Lebanon, the Gulf of Aden, the Sahel and theAdriatic. However, national interests now extend far beyond this. The security of energy and trade routes through Suez, the growing instability in the Horn of Africa and Chinese penetration in the eastern Mediterranean require a broader and more continuous presence.

A nuclear-powered aircraft carrier would allow Italy to assume a role as guarantor of maritime security in the extended Mediterranean, operating autonomously and continuously as far as the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean. This would mean freeing itself, at least in part, from operational dependence on the United States and France, and establishing itself as the third European pillar of naval power.

Politically, the impact would be significant: Italy would evolve from a regional player to a medium global power, capable of rapid intervention in humanitarian crises, evacuations, and NATO or EU missions far from its shores. In an era when freedom of navigation is increasingly contested — from Iran in the Strait of Hormuz to Houthi attacks in the Red Sea — the ability to deploy an independent task force with 40–50 embarked aircraft would transform the Italian Navy into a credible and continuous instrument of deterrence.

The value for NATO and European defence

From a Euro-Atlantic perspective, the entry into service of an Italian nuclear aircraft carrier would have far-reaching effects. NATO today is largely dependent on the eleven US units for global power projection and on the French aircraft carrier alone for the European component. Italy, with a national nuclear platform, would decisively strengthen the Alliance’s southern flank, ensuring a stable presence in the Mediterranean, Red Sea andIndian Ocean.

Such a capability would reduce the pressure on the United States, allowing Europe to assume a more significant share of strategic responsibility in areas of direct continental interest. For the European Union, it would mean taking a concrete step towards a truly credible common defence, not only coordinated but equipped with autonomous means of projection. Italy, thanks to its geographical position and naval tradition, would be the natural pivot of this arrangement, strengthening the cohesion between NATO and EU defence and consolidating the role of the Mediterranean as a shared operational space and no longer a peripheral one.

Industrial and technological dimension

A project of this magnitude would not only be a military choice, but a long-term industrial policy. Italy already possesses excellent skills in the sector: Fincantieri is among the world leaders in the construction of complex military units, while Ansaldo Nucleare and ENEA have gained experience in the field of small-scale modular reactors (SMR), a technology that lends itself to naval versions. Collaboration with France, which is developing its future nuclear aircraft carrier PANG, would not only be desirable but probably necessary to gain access to military propulsion know-how .

From an economic point of view, the investment – estimated at between EUR 8 and 10 billion over 15 to 18 years – may appear impressive, but it must be interpreted in the light of the life cycle of over forty years and the internal industrial return. In France, the construction of the Charles de Gaulle alone generated more than 10,000 direct and indirect jobs; for Italy, a similar programme would have an even greater impact, fuelling national shipbuilding, electronics and nuclear industries.

The necessary step towards strategic maturity

Ultimately, a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier would not be a symbol of excess but a statement of strategic maturity. Its realization would mark Italy’s transition from a regional to an autonomous maritime power, capable of defending its vital sea lines of communication and contributing meaningfully to the collective security of the West.

As France’s experience shows, naval independence is not a matter of economic size but of political vision. If Italy genuinely seeks to play the role that its geography and capabilities warrant — at the crossroads of Europe, Africa, and the Middle East — it must equip itself with the instruments to act, not merely to react.

And among those instruments, in the twenty-first century, a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier stands as the cornerstone of a responsible, modern, and globally relevant strategy — for Italy, for NATO, and for Europe as a whole.