European Commission Welcomes Member States' Adoption of Five Joint European Defense Projects

Brussels, September 28 (KUNA) -- The European Commission welcomed on Monday the decision by member states to adopt the first five European Projects of Common Interest (PCIs) in the field of defense, affirming that these projects will bolster European defense capabilities through the joint development of key military systems. In a statement, the Commission said the defense projects can now move to the funding stage following the member states’ decision, noting that 325 million euros (approximately 369.7 million dollars) have been allocated to support their development and deployment under the European Defense Industrial Program, valued at 1.5 billion euros (approximately 1.7 billion dollars). It added that the decision represents a major step in implementing the program, which aims to help the European defense industrial sector increase its production capacity and contribute to the development of vital military capabilities for the security and defense of the European Union and its member states. The industrial projects focus on five priority areas: unmanned aerial systems and their countermeasures, maritime and seabed defense, space, air and missile defense, as well as enhancing security along the EU’s eastern flank. The Commission noted that these projects respond to its call to member states to submit proposals for projects that could be included in the list of European Projects of Common Interest in defense. It pointed out that these large-scale industrial projects provide a framework for member states to cooperate on major defense initiatives that exceed, in scale or complexity, the capacity of individual countries to develop on their own. It emphasized that sustained long-term cooperation would strengthen the European defense industry and improve the Union’s ability to respond to shared security challenges, in line with the defense capability priorities of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). (End) Arn / M.M.J