ABSTRACT
After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a process of transformation of defence policy occurred in Europe. Relevant novelties have also been introduced in Italy. Yet significant constraints and obstacles seem to hinder the development of a new defence policy paradigm. Thus, what is the degree of defence policy change in Italy after the war in Ukraine? The chapter aims to answer this question. Recent research has defined the evolution of Italian defence after the war in Ukraine as “adjustment”. Still, there are several forms and types of gradual change. This analysis focuses especially on the concept of tense layering to illustrate the kind of transformation of the post-2022 Italian defence, as well as its potential risks, obstacles, and problems. The manuscript provides two main contributions. First, it describes the complex process of military evolution of the defence policy of one of the most militarily active Western countries in the new century, since 2014 onwards. Second, the chapter disentangles some aspects of the current scholarly debate on policy change, assessing – thanks to the case of Italy – the features of specific forms of adjustment.
