Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s office denied reports that the supply of SpaceX’s Starlink services was discussed during her recent visit to the United States.
“The prime minister’s office categorically denies, considering it ridiculous, that SpaceX was a topic during the meeting with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump,” her office said in a statement on Monday.
Meloni made an unannounced trip to Florida on Saturday to meet Trump at his Mar-a-Lago residence ahead of his January 20 inauguration. Bloomberg News had reported on Sunday that Italy’s discussions with SpaceX, which had previously stalled, appeared to progress following Meloni’s meeting with Trump.
The prime minister’s office refuted claims of any agreements being reached. “Contacts with SpaceX are part of regular discussions that state departments have with companies, in this instance those that provide protected connections such as data encryption,” the office clarified.
SpaceX, owned by billionaire Elon Musk, operates Starlink, a satellite telecommunications provider that uses a network of low Earth orbit satellites. Starlink has been available in Italy since 2021, serving approximately 50,000 customers. However, its business remains modest in the euro zone’s third-largest economy.
Italy is reportedly considering Starlink’s services to improve internet access in remote regions, addressing delays in state-funded fibre-optic rollouts. In October, the foreign ministry also announced that it was evaluating the use of Starlink systems to strengthen communications for Italian diplomats and defence officials in high-risk areas across the Mediterranean.
With around 60% of the 7,500 satellites orbiting Earth, Starlink is a leading provider of low Earth orbit satellite services, giving SpaceX a significant competitive edge in global satellite telecommunications.
