The UK should cease excluding technology from the joint GCAP fighter jet program with Italy and Japan, according to Italian Defense Minister Crosetto.

According to reports, Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto has charged Britain of secretly retaining technology under the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), collaboration between Italy and Japan aimed at creating a next-generation fighter jet by 2035. In an interview with Reuters, Crosetto emphasized that technology sharing is essential for a meaningful marriage and asked the UK to get over obstacles of selfishness and fully share ideas. According to him, there are no longer any people who wish to uphold archaic traditions and who can be regarded as first or second class. The defense minister is a key figure in the right-wing Brothers of Italy party, which is led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

The Global Combat Air Programme aims to create an advanced aircraft with state-of-the-art technologies. Crosetto, a leading member of the Brothers of Italy party led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, stressed that no partner should be given special treatment. Although he did not go into detail about the innovations that were retained, he contrasted Italy's whole commitment to open sharing and Japan's near total cooperation with the UK's apparent reluctance. We were unable to contact the British Ministry of Defense for comment.

Citing Saudi Arabia's substantial finances and technology needs, Crosetto backed the country's potential involvement in the Global Combat Air Programme. By emphasizing Japan's involvement as a paradigm for expanding defense cooperation outside of Europe, he positioned the project as a model for worldwide collaboration. In 2024, Britain, Italy, and Japan formed a joint company to advance the jet's development, building on their 2022 agreement. The 33.3% stake owned by Italy's Leonardo, Britain's BAE Systems and Japan's Aircraft Industrial Enhancement is a significant step toward the project's completion.