The Italian government plans to transfer of FH-70 155mm towed howitzers and other military aid to Ukraine, La Repubblica newspaper reported on 13 May.
FIM-92 Stinger MANPADS, antitank weapons, machine guns and ammunition are also included in the package.
The Italian MoD has not confirmed the plan and routinely refuses to comment on matters it deems classified. Any potential arms transfer to Ukraine is a highly sensitive political and economic issue, as Italy depends on Russia for 40% of its natural gas supply.
The FH-70 was developed in the late 1960s and 1970s by OTO Melara (now Leonardo), Rheinmetall and VSEL (now BAE Systems).
While it is therefore an older system than the M777 howitzers already donated by the US and Australia to Ukraine, an automatic primer loader and a semi-automatic projectile loader with the FH-70 still enables a trained crew to fire six rounds per minute.