The European Union plans to use unused funds from the SAFE program to finance joint defense developments with domestic enterprises. One of the key areas of technological cooperation will be the creation of a new modular FREYJA missile defense system.
The European Union plans to use unused funds from the SAFE program to finance joint defense developments with domestic enterprises. One of the key areas of technological cooperation will be the creation of a new modular FREYJA missile defense system.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced such plans during her speech in the European Parliament on September 16. According to her, Europe intends to provide Ukraine with the most powerful support on the eve of the most difficult winter in wartime.
The head of the European Commission stressed the need to strengthen Ukraine's air defenses amid constant attacks by Russian drones and North Korean missiles. She recalled that last week the EU approved the purchase of American Patriot interceptor missiles , but stressed the importance of reducing dependence on a single supplier.
To solve this problem, Brussels and Kyiv plan to jointly develop an affordable modular missile defense system.
"The FREYJA project is at the heart of this cooperation. Here we combine Ukrainian combat experience and innovation with European technological leadership. And, of course, with our significant production capacities," von der Leyen explained.
She also added that the cooperation will not be limited to this project, and European money will go directly to joint ventures.
"FREYJA is just the beginning. More is needed. Using the funds remaining from SAFE, we will launch a new program for joint projects with Ukrainian companies," the President of the European Commission said. At the same time, she did not specify the exact amount of the remaining funds that are planned to be invested in domestic defense-tech.
In addition to military-technological cooperation, European leaders plan to focus on providing humanitarian aid, supporting the Ukrainian energy system, and tightening control over compliance with existing sanctions against Russia, as the aggressor state is constantly looking for ways to circumvent them.
Let us remind you that dev.ua published an article about how the Freyja pan-European ballistic shield project works , why the Ukrainian FP-7.x missile is at its heart, and most importantly, when it can start shooting down Russian ballistic missiles.
