Within the framework of the European Defense Fund (EDF), the European Union announces a budget of 1,200 million euros to support 61 collaborative research and development projects in the field of defence. This funding is intended to support defense capability projects such as the next generation of fighter jets, tanks, and ships, as well as critical defense technologies, such as military cloud, artificial intelligence, semiconductors, space, cyberspace, or medicine.
This fund is accessible to companies of all sizes, from large world-renowned manufacturers to SMEs, VSEs or defense start-ups.
Air combat systems benefit from the largest amount at €189.9 million, ahead of land (€154.7 million) and naval (€103.5 million) combat systems.
Sovereignty and interoperability
Launched in 2021, the EDF is the first European fund dedicated entirely to defence. It has an endowment of 7,953 million euros for the 2021-2027 budget year. Its objective is to create a real defense industrial and technological base (BITD) at the European level to strengthen the sovereignty of the EU, improve the interoperability of European equipment with compatible systems to facilitate cooperation in the field.
According to a report from Europe, in 2017 there were 178 different weapon systems in the EU compared to 30 in the US, 17 tank models (versus 1 in the US), 29 destroyer models (4 in the US) and 20 fighter aircraft models (compared to 6 in the United States). “This fragmentation complicates the coordination of national armies and generates additional costs,” the report analyzes.
Source: BFM TV
