The nineteen European Union countries that have made use of the European SAFE instrument of preferential loans to increase investment in defence (see EUROPE 13705/18) had all by the end of November sent the European Commission their national plans detailing the projects they intend to finance.
Of these nineteen countries, “fifteen Member States have provided support for Ukraine. It’s more than expected! And we are talking about billions [of euros], not millions”, declared the European Commissioner for Defence, Andrius Kubilius, on Monday 1 December, via the X network.
Commission’s spokesman, Thomas Régnier, did not wish to give the names of the participating countries that did not wish to implement projects with Ukraine, or the total value of the projects involving Ukraine. He simply confirmed that the sums initially allocated to the participating countries had not changed (see EUROPE 13705/18) and that the projects identified are fully in line with the Commission’s ‘roadmap’ on the state of readiness of the defence sector between now and 2030 (see EUROPE 13732/1).
It is now up to the EU institution to assess the national investment plans, in particular their ability to work on a cross-border basis. This work should last until January 2026. Once the Commission has validated them, it will be up to the EU Council to approve them within six weeks, by a qualified majority of the Member States. In the meantime, pre-financing of up to 15% of the total budget may be paid.
“Basically, it is the same way like it was with the Next Generation EU. You need to show the reforms, the measures you are taking in order to obtain the funding”, said the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Kaja Kallas.
With a plan worth over €43.73 billion, Poland will be by far the biggest beneficiary of the SAFE instrument, followed by Romania (€16.68 billion), then France and Hungary (€16.22 billion each).
When asked about the participation of third countries following the failure of negotiations with the United Kingdom (see EUROPE 13762/2), M. Régnier said that the military industry of third countries that have not concluded specific agreements with the EU will still be able to supply equipment and components up to 35% of the total value of a project. Negotiations on Canada’s participation in the SAFE instrument are continuing, with the aim of involving the Canadian critical materials industry. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion with Camille-Cerise Gessant)