Overview

• An interministerial committee approved the €13.5 billion bridge on August 6, leaving only the Court of Audit endorsement before funding can be released
• Preliminary surveys and site preparation are slated for September–October 2025, with main construction set to start in 2026 and completion targeted for 2032–2033
• More than 440 properties will be expropriated on both Sicilian and Calabrian sides, prompting residents and ‘No Bridge’ committees to vow legal appeals
• Environmental groups have lodged complaints with the European Union over risks to migratory birds and potential damage in the seismically active strait
• Rome plans to count the bridge’s cost toward NATO defence‐spending targets and has pledged anti-mafia safeguards modeled on Expo 2015 and the Milan-Cortina Olympics