​The 2025 edition of Mare Aperto, the Italian Navy's primary training activity, has successfully concluded. This year's iteration stood out for its innovation, complexity, and significant operational relevance. It represented a true stress test for the Fleet, which operated in a fully integrated and synergic manner across all components: from the crews of surface and submarine units to aviation groups, from the troops of the San Marco Marine Brigade to the staffs of the Headquarters, Specialized and Division Commands, communication centers, and logistical and maintenance support branches.
A complex and cohesive operational system which, in addition to intensive training, ensured the uninterrupted projection of national maritime presence across all ongoing operations.

The exercise unfolded within a high-intensity scenario, pushing each asset to the limits of its operational capabilities. Particular emphasis was placed on the planning and execution of manoeuvres in accordance with NATO methodology, employing a flexible, responsive, and effective approach to effect generation. The participating staffs operated in a dynamic environment marked by a fast-operational tempo, increasing complexity, and continuous adaptation, thereby enhancing professional competencies and interoperability among forces.
One of the most distinctive features of this edition was the ability to combine operational realism with changing environmental conditions, making the training even more adherent to real-world scenarios and testing units' adaptability under challenging weather conditions.
Among the main innovations, the introduction of new naval and aerial targets for live-fire exercises, including nighttime drills, enhanced the realism of training activities. Emphasis was also placed on electronic warfare, with the use of missile seeker simulators and activation of countermeasures, enabling crews to effectively manage complex threats. One of the most significant challenges was the experimental use of alternative communication systems in the absence of satellite support, which tested the resilience and autonomy of operational networks in degraded connectivity environments. Furthermore, an integrated approach to the cyber and space domains - increasingly decisive in modern operations - was central to the exercise.
Particularly noteworthy was the debut of the multi-role amphibious assault ship Trieste, which played a central role in operations carried out in synergy with the other units of the Amphibious Task Group (ATG).
The landing forces operated according to the principles of Distributed Maritime Operations (DMO), conducting assaults in coastal and riverine environments, as demonstrated by operations along the Tiber River and in the Santa Rosa area. For the first time, Trieste operated alongside aircraft carrier Cavour, marking a key milestone in strengthening the Navy's expeditionary capability, now able to project an integrated and technologically advanced force.
With a Carrier Strike Group equipped with fifth-generation aircraft and an Amphibious Task Group centred on a next-generation platform, Italy affirms itself among the few nations capable of deploying a true Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG), reinforcing its role as a credible actor in international security, stability, and deterrence. In this framework, Mare Aperto was conducted in conjunction with NATO's enhanced vigilance activity Neptune Strike, confirming the full integration of the Italian Navy within the Allied structure and its operational readiness in a multilevel context.
Great focus was placed on the cognitive domain. Cognitive warfare activities - one of the most sophisticated expressions of hybrid threats - were at the heart of a scenario that, for the first time, featured the use of wargaming as a tool for analysis and decision-making support.
In this context, the experimental adoption of simulated social media platforms enabled crews, staffs, research centres as CASD, Ce.S.I., CESMAR, and university students to engage with dynamics typical of the information domain. This initiative reflects ongoing technological evolution and the Navy's commitment to proactively managing hybrid threats, particularly in the cognitive sphere, and demonstrates the Navy's intent to foster interaction between operational and academic domains.
Mare Aperto 25 confirmed its status as a virtuous model of international, joint, and interagency cooperation. On the international front, permanent NATO naval groups - Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 and Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 2 - operated alongside the European Maritime Force (EUROMARFOR), further strengthening multinational interoperability.
On the joint and interagency front, special mention must be made of the contribution of the Italian Air Force, and of the large-scale CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear) exercise, which involved a broad spectrum of actors, including the Italian Army, Carabinieri, Coast Guard, Civil Protection Department, Fire and Rescue Service, Italian Red Cross, auxiliary corps, CISOM, ARES 118, and numerous local civilian entities. This joint commitment demonstrated the effectiveness and cohesion of the national system in managing complex emergencies, ensuring national security and public safety.
Of particular note were the activities conducted as part of ITAMINEX, an exercise focused on mine countermeasure operations. The deployed assets - including minehunters and unmanned underwater and surface vehicles - operated in both simulated training scenarios and real-life clearance missions. These led to the discovery of 13 unexploded ordnance devices from World War II, four of which have already been safely neutralized, with clearance operations for the remaining devices ongoing and scheduled to conclude in collaboration with local authorities.
From a logistical perspective, the exercise highlighted the effectiveness of the synergy between operations and support: from embarked technical teams to at-sea resupply of fuel, materials, and munitions, to the full involvement of the Logistic Command and the national defence industry. The results confirm the Italian Navy's ability to generate and sustain a complex, interconnected maritime force ready to meet current and future challenges.
As with every edition, the challenge continues: to capitalise on the results achieved and leverage the lessons learned. This is a task entrusted to the Italian Navy Training Centre, the Division Commands, and the Specialist components - key players in a modern, credible, and excellence-oriented national maritime system