The Cold War case for Italy retaining battleships

Under what circumstances could Italy retain modern capital ships after World War II?

Only an immediate Soviet battleship threat is likely to override war-prize policy and make Western governments preserve Italian heavy ships for Mediterranean and North Atlantic service.

Soviet deployment of modern battleships is the plausible trigger for a different settlement. If Soviet heavy units were active in the Mediterranean or North Atlantic, the Western allies would have a practical reason to keep every available modern capital ship, including Italian vessels otherwise divided or discarded as war prizes.