EU and Ukraine launch €161 million programme to develop defence technologies

The European Commission and Ukraine's Ministry of Defence have launched cooperation in investing €161 million in innovative and breakthrough technologies.

Source: Ministry of Defence of Ukraine

Details: The relevant agreement was signed during the EU–Ukraine Business Summit in Brussels.

"We are launching systemic cooperation with the European Commission in investing in defence innovation. Our efforts are focused on supporting technologies that have already proven effective on the battlefield and are shaping the advantage in modern warfare," said Serhii Boiev, Ukraine's Deputy Minister of Defence for European Integration, after the signing of the agreement.

The initiative is aimed at strengthening Ukraine's resilience, developing its defence-industrial complex and enhancing its defence capabilities.

The programme is expected to support strategic sectors of the economy, with a focus on innovative and dual-use technologies, particularly in the fields of aerial, ground and maritime drones, electronic protection systems, space technologies, communications, navigation and critical components.

The agreement provides for the launch of a financial programme totalling €161 million: €140 million will be in the form of EU guarantees, while a further €21 million will be provided as an EU investment grant.

It is expected that this will help attract up to €400 million in bank lending, including for capital investments and the coverage of operational costs.

Hanna Hvozdiar, an adviser to Ukraine's Minister of Defence, said: "Today, dual-use technologies play an important role both for defence and for industrial development. Therefore, such support is an investment in specific Ukrainian capabilities: stronger production, greater technological capacity and the development of solutions needed for defence. In a broader sense, this is also a contribution to the security of the whole of Europe."

The programme will be coordinated by Ukraine's Ministry of Defence, while the National Development Institution will act as the implementing body.

Background: Last autumn, it was reported that the EU was allocating more than €140 million for Ukrainian dual-use technologies.

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