Decode39 launched on 10 December 2021 as the international spin-off of Formiche, the Rome outlet that has covered geopolitics for Italian decision-makers since 2004. The name refers to Italy's international dialling code. It publishes in English with a parallel Arabic edition, is registered with the Court of Rome, and runs with a newsroom of about five journalists plus a translation team, drawing additionally on Formiche's writers. Valeria Covato, co-director of Formiche.net, has directed it since launch. Today, Decode39 is mainly focused on Italian foreign and security policy read for an international audience, covering NATO summits and defence spending, the defence-industrial base, Italy's relations with China including its withdrawal from the Belt and Road Initiative, critical minerals and supply-chain security, the Mattei Plan and Mediterranean and Africa policy, transatlantic technology alignment, energy and cybersecurity, from their newsroom in Rome, Italy. One interesting fact: the site was launched at the Farnesina, Italy's foreign ministry, with then Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio and Marco Minniti of the Leonardo-backed Med-Or Foundation as the headline speakers, and its founding director described the editorial mission as covering contemporary challenges according to Italy's strategic interest.