The 1st Portuguese-Italian Defence Industries, co-organised by AED Cluster Portugal, took place in Rome on 2 and 3 July 2025.
The event was organised by a bilateral partnership between Portugal and Italy, which included the Portuguese Embassy in Rome, the Directorate-General for National Defence Policy, the Directorate-General for National Defence Resources, the General Staff of the Armed Forces, AICEP Portugal Global, idD Portugal Defence and AED Cluster Portugal, on the Portuguese side, and the Italian Federation of Aerospace, Defence and Security Industries (AIAD), on the Italian side.
The two days brought together the Portuguese and Italian ecosystems in a programme designed to foster bilateral cooperation, business exchange and industrial partnerships in the sector.
The first day was marked by industrial visits to Leonardo and MBDA, thus strengthening links with some of the main players in the European defence ecosystem. The day ended with a Networking Cocktail at the Portuguese Residence in Rome, attended by Bernardo Futscher Pereira, Portuguese Ambassador in Rome, Vice Admiral Giacinto Ottaviani, NAD, Giuseppe Cossiga, President of AIAD, and Nuno Melo, Portuguese Minister of Defence.
The highlight of the second day was the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between AED Cluster Portugal and AIAD, which confirmed the mutual commitment to promote industrial and institutional co-operation between the two countries.
This day’s agenda also includes speeches by the Portuguese Ambassador in Rome, Bernardo Futscher Pereira, as well as Vice-Admiral Giacinto Ottaviani, Italy’s National Armaments Director, and Nuno Melo, Portugal’s Minister of National Defence.
The morning also included presentations by AED, AICEP and idD Portugal Defence, followed by pitch sessions with the more than 20 Portuguese companies represented at the event, a moment that allowed synergies to be created and opportunities for collaboration with Italian partners to be explored.
After the presentations by the Italian companies, networking sessions took place in the afternoon, with the aim of strengthening dialogue and interaction between the two ecosystems.
The co-organisation and participation of AED Cluster Portugal in this external mission is part of the Global Connect project, co-financed by Compete 2030 and Feder.
