Germany and Australia could be among the countries interested in joining the "Global Combat Air Program" (GCAP) fighter jet initiative in the future, Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto said on Thursday, adding that Saudi Arabia and Canada have also made inquiries about the project.
GCAP, which currently includes Italy, the United Kingdom, and Japan, aims to develop a next-generation fighter jet by 2035. The project is led by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in Japan, BAE Systems in the United Kingdom, and Leonardo in Italy.
"Germany could potentially join this project in the future," Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto told a parliamentary hearing.
At present, Germany is participating in the rival Future Combat Air System (FCAS) project, valued at EUR100 billion, which also includes France and Spain.
This project, set to replace France's Rafale and Germany and Spain's Eurofighter jets with a sixth-generation fighter from 2040, has been hampered by disagreements over the aircraft's design, involving Dassault Aviation and Airbus.
"We are creating the necessary conditions so that any country wishing to participate [in GCAP] knows which path to take," Crosetto said, adding that "Australia could also be interested."
The minister also emphasized that the three founding countries of the project, which foresees stealth fighters operating alongside drones, have agreed to cooperate on an equal footing.
"The more participating countries there are, the greater the critical mass for investment, the more talent you can gather, the bigger the economic return, and the lower the cost for us," Crosetto stated.
(Reporting by Angelo Amante, French version by Benjamin Mallet, editing by Sophie Louet)
