IC Oversight & Policy — 2026-07-08

Italian Intelligence Watchdog COPASIR Accelerates Probe Into Chinese Investments With AISE Director Testimony Planned

BLUFCopasir's compressed timeline and two-track structure position Italy to impose sector-specific screening on Chinese capital before the next acquisition forces a reactive political response.

Italy's parliamentary intelligence oversight committee, Copasir, chaired by Lorenzo Guerini, is accelerating an inquiry into Chinese investments launched two months ago, with hearings continuing into the first week of August and a final report due to Parliament by year's end or early 2027 12. The committee has already heard from the Italian Institute of International Affairs, the Aspen Institute, and the Italian Institute for International Political Studies 12. AISE Director Giovanni Caravelli was scheduled to testify before Copasir on July 8 under Article 31 of law 124/2007 3. Sources at Palazzo San Macuto told Decode39 and Formiche.net his testimony would not focus specifically on China 12. Formiche.net reported recent Chinese moves involving Pirelli and Ferretti have kept the issue prominent in Rome 2.

Analysis
Copasir's compressed hearing calendar, running through early August rather than drifting past summer recess, signals lawmakers want findings ready before further high-profile Chinese acquisitions complicate the political calculus, though the timing may equally reflect routine scheduling ahead of the parliamentary break. Caravelli's Article 31 appearance gives the committee access to AISE's broader threat picture even without China-specific testimony, and sequencing outside expert input before intelligence-service access points toward a final report meant to separate ordinary economic exposure from genuine security risk rather than treat all Chinese capital in Italy as uniform threat. Sourcing rests on a single primary parliamentary notice and one outlet's uncorroborated account of the committee's internal thinking, leaving convergence built on a narrow base.

3 sources

Italy intelligence watchdog speeds up probe into Chinese investments - Decode39
Ecco come il Copasir procede spedito sugli investimenti cinesi - Formiche.net
Copasir, mercoledì alle 14 audizione Caravelli - Stampa Parlamento