Italy’s Premier Giorgia Meloni said her government is in talks with private companies, including Elon Musk’s SpaceX, over the country’s telecoms security system, but denied having discussed the issue

Italy is in advanced talks with Elon Musk's SpaceX over a 1.5 billion euro ($1.55 billion) deal for the company to provide secure telecommunications to the government, Bloomberg News reported on Sunday.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said Italy is in preliminary talks with Elon Musk’s SpaceX to provide secure communications for the government.

Italy's far-right government led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is close to a 1.5-billion-euro ($1.6-billion) deal with Elon Musk's SpaceX that could drive a wedge between the nation and Europe's technology sector.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni defended Elon Musk's growing involvement in politics on Thursday and said she had never discussed with him a potential deal to supply secure communications to Italy.

Italian opposition leaders roundly criticized Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government for engaging in talks with Elon Musk’s SpaceX on a €1.5 billion ($1.6 billion) deal for encrypted communications systems.

Elon Musk said on Monday he was ready to provide Italy with secure communication services after Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni denied that the issue had come up during a weekend visit to the United States.