An illustration of a proposed 2-mile suspension bridge connecting Italy's southern mainland to the island of Sicily. Construction is expected to begin this year, with completion expected between 2032 and 2033. (Italian Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport)

Editor’s note: This story was updated on Friday, Sept. 5, 2025, with information on developments related to the bridge.

NAPLES, Italy — There are no immediate plans to classify a massive suspension bridge proposed to connect the island of Sicily to Italy’s mainland as a NATO asset, the Italian government said this month.

No defense funds have been allocated for the $15.7 billion project, which is completely financed by the state, Italy’s infrastructure and transport ministry said, according to a recent report by the Italian newspaper La Repubblica.

In approving the project last month, Italy positioned the roughly 2-mile span as a potential strategic corridor to rapidly deploy troops and equipment to NATO’s southern flanks.

The comments by the ministry appear to be in response to a U.S. warning against creative accounting by alliance members when it comes to meeting a requirement of spending 5% of their gross domestic product on defense by 2035.

U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker directly addressed the Italian bridge, saying he was watching the situation carefully, Bloomberg News reported.

Italy said it would spend 2% of its GDP on defense this year, in line with NATO’s benchmark requirement, Reuters reported April 17. In 2024, the country spent about 1.5% of its GDP on defense, according to a NATO report last year.

The idea dates to Roman times and the Italian government first asked for proposals in 1969. The project has been canceled previously due to concerns about seismic activity and environmental impacts, among other issues.

In its statement, the ministry foreshadowed that the green light for the bridge was not certain. The Italian Court of Auditors must still approve the project, according to the La Repubblica report.