Defense package of hundreds of millions of euros in the making – Finland involved in all projects

On Friday, the Commission proposed five new large-scale defense projects, the purpose of which is to help EU countries strengthen their defense capabilities by developing key military systems together with willing countries. The industrial projects presented by the Commission focus on five priority areas, which are: drones and anti-drone systems, defense of sea areas and the seabed, space and air and missile defense, and strengthening the security of the EU’s eastern border.

All selected projects also support NATO’s performance objectives. It means that, for example, Finland does not develop different capabilities in the EU and different capabilities in NATO, but rather the same capabilities.

“The proposal presented today is an important step towards a more efficient European defense,” says the senior vice-president of the Commission Henna Virkkunenwhich is responsible for Europe’s security, technological sovereignty and democracy.

“The goal is to strengthen Europe’s industrial base, overcome key performance gaps and ensure that Europe is better prepared to meet current security challenges,” he continues.

The new projects offer EU countries the opportunity to cooperate in defense projects that are too large or complex to be implemented by individual countries.

According to Virkkunen, the new projects show the added value produced by European defense cooperation.

“The proposed European defense projects of common interest will help turn common priorities into concrete performance development, from drones and missile defense to maritime security, space and the eastern border,” says Virkkunen.

On average, 18 Member States participate in each project. In addition, Ukraine is involved in four out of five projects.

“Thanks to the broad participation of the member states and Ukraine’s participation in the four projects, we strengthen both Europe’s security and the long-term competitiveness of its defense industry in a way that is completely complementary to NATO. Finland is involved in all projects,” says Virkkunen.

325 million euros have been earmarked for the projects in the initial phase, but the amounts will probably increase when a decision is made on the EU’s future multi-year financial framework (MFF 2028–2034).

Next week, at the NATO summit in Ankara, it is planned to hear more about the joint projects in which Finland participates. In addition to project cooperation with EU countries, Finland also plans to participate in projects with the United States, according to NATO sources.

“Finland looks at these as a whole, what can we do in the EU or NATO,” says a NATO source.

Next steps

It is intended to rapidly advance defense projects in the common interest of Europe in the member states.

The Council of the Member States will next deal with the official establishment of the projects. At the same time, the goals and characteristics of the projects, the participating countries and the estimated amount of investments that the projects are expected to generate are defined.

Once EDPCI projects have been approved by the Council of EU Member States, they receive EU funding through the European Defense Industrial Program (EDIP). The funding enables the implementation of the initial phase of the projects and creates the basis for possible additional funding from the European Competitiveness Fund included in the future multi-annual financial framework.

The Commission intends to monitor the progress of the projects in order to ensure their timely implementation.