On July 7, 2025, the Italian Minister of Defence Guido Crosetto, his Japanese counterpart Nakatani Gen, and the United Kingdom’s Secretary of State for Defence John Healey took part in a videoconference meeting, confirming the following points:

1) The three ministers welcomed the announcement made by industry representatives on June 20 (see AVIONEWS) regarding the official launch of Edgewing, a joint venture bringing together the international aerospace sector leaders BAE Systems (United Kingdom), Leonardo (Italy), and Japan Aircraft Industrial Enhancement Co. Ltd. (Japan).

2) The three ministers also greeted the opening of the new headquarters of the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) International Government Organization (Gigo) and Edgewing in Reading. Gigo and Edgewing will work together from this location, under the guidance of a streamlined governance structure, to advance the programme according to the scheduled timelines and in coordination with the teams from the three nations.

3) The three ministers reaffirmed their strong personal commitment to the programme and confirmed that all necessary efforts will be accelerated to conclude the first international contract between Gigo and Edgewing by the end of the current year. They also discussed deepening trilateral cooperation to achieve the shared objectives of Gcap and ensure its sustained success.