European Defence Fund calls due as EU leaders press for more coordinated defence and security funding
Photo credits: Mihael Lazar / Unsplash
The European Commission is about to open a €1 billion funding round for defence research and development projects under the European Defence Fund (EDF). The round spans seven thematic priorities, including space, air and naval combat, as well as energy resilience and the environmental transition.
This year’s top priority is ground combat, which will get a €192 million allocation. Thematic calls will target technology for counter-battery capabilities, future modular multifunctional land platforms, land collaborative combat and drone-based mass munitions.
The EDF round comes as talks intensify over coordinated EU defence spending. EU leaders gathered in Brussels this week to discuss joint spending worth hundreds of billions of euros. And last week, 19 EU states called on the European Investment Bank to increase its investment in security and defence, despite the bank already doubling its…
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