Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni denied Thursday talking to Elon Musk about a cybersecurity deal with the American billionaire's SpaceX company following reports that sparked controversy in Italy.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni did not discuss the issue of Elon Musk's SpaceX supplying Italy with its Starlink services during her weekend visit to the United States, her office said in a statement on Monday.

After a unannounced visit to meet with President-elect Donald Trump, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni says SpaceX deal weren't discussed.

The Italian government is in advanced talks with Elon Musk's company about securing government communications. The $1.6 billion contract is planned to be implemented over five years. This is set to be the largest project of its kind in Europe and has already been approved by Italian intelligence services and the Ministry of Defense.

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.