(Alliance News) - "No one can do it alone, not even large international companies." This was the message delivered by Roberto Cingolani, CEO of Leonardo Spa, during a conference organized in Rome by Ericsson.

As Il Sole 24 Ore reported Tuesday, the CEO stressed the urgency of a "paradigm shift" and a "burst of European pride," pointing out that "companies must join forces and create critical mass, otherwise even the giants will not make it."

Leonardo is already on this path, as evidenced by the joint venture with Rheinmetall, launched in Rome last October, to develop and produce military combat vehicles in Europe. In addition, the next-generation fighter project - Global Combat Air Program - will be signed on Dec. 13, in collaboration with Japan and the UK.

The program will see equal participation by Leonardo, BAE Systems and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, each with 33.3 percent stakes. Recently, the UK also considered the possibility of including Saudi Arabia in the partnership. But Cingolani preferred not to comment, deferring to the Dec. 13 signing.

The Leonardo CEO also reiterated the importance of overcoming the current model, where each European country independently manages its own resources, such as ships or satellites, a sign of Europe's "great weakness."

According to Cingolani, Europe must join forces in order to compete with the great global economic and technological powers. Leonardo, in this sense, is also ready to give up part of its domestic business to increase its international competitiveness.

"I am willing to sacrifice 20 percent of my domestic business if I can acquire 5 percent of the global market," he said.

The need to create a "European defense space" is even more relevant in a context where wars are increasingly fought with data and information, rather than only with weapons. Cingolani stressed that cybersecurity is crucial today, as demonstrated by the conflict in Ukraine. In this context, Leonardo aims to boost 5G to ensure European security, aligning with the call of Andrea Missori, CEO of Ericsson Italy, who urged greater collaboration between the industries of telecommunications, defense and other strategic areas, to create the critical mass needed to invest in new technologies and close the gap with China and the US.

Leonardo's focus on alliances is also highlighted by the future creation of a new company dedicated to nuclear research, a project involving Leonardo, Enel and Ansaldo Nucleare. Cingolani confirmed that this is an initiative in the definition phase, where the group has an "exploratory role."

By Giuseppe Fabio Ciccomascolo, Alliance News senior reporter

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