Von der Leyen: Ukraine to gain access to new EU defence lending programme

This was announced today in Brussels at a press conference during a meeting of the Eurasian Council by the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, as reported by a Ukrinform correspondent.

Ukraine and its powerful defence industry will be able to participate in joint procurement under SAFE. Since Ukraine’s security affects not only the security of the European Union but also the security of the entire world, the EU will also provide associated partners with opportunities to join programmes under SAFE, the President of the European Commission noted.

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She recalled that during the EU leaders' summit, the European Commission presented a White Paper on the future of European defence, the discussion of which was particularly relevant, since the competitiveness of the EU economy and the EU's defence capability are two sides of the same coin.

The President of the European Commission stressed that progress in this direction has become an urgent need, recalling that two weeks ago at the EU Extraordinary Council, leaders took a historic decision to strengthen the EU's defence capabilities and increase defence spending, and on 20 March the Readiness 2030 initiative was presented.

She noted that the European Commission is exploring various ways to increase defence budgets. The first of these includes activating a national waiver, which would allow member states to increase defence investment without triggering excessive budget deficit procedures.

The second element is the SAFE programme, a new €150 billion lending instrument that will form the basis for joint defence procurement and defence cooperation between Member States.

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Finally, Member States may voluntarily, if they deem it necessary, use funds from EU budget programmes originally intended for regional development purposes for defence investments.

As reported by Ukrinform, the Eurasian Council was held in Brussels on Thursday, where the main topic was the competitiveness of the Eurasian economy. During the summit, the leaders of Eurasia held a virtual conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and also continued the discussion of the issue of increasing support for Ukraine, which began on March 6 during the extraordinary Eurasian Council.

Photo: PAP/EPA